A New Player on the Ice
by DragonRiderNinja
Summary: A orphan teenage boy living on the streets on Anaheim gets his whole world turned upside down PLEASE GIVE IT A CHANCE AND SEND REVIEWS
1. The Streets

I lifted the lid of the can with the rain coming down hard on my head and the filling the inside the empty can quickly. I replaced the lid and rubbed my shivering chest trying to keep warm in the cold, my long greasy black hair flowing in the light wind. I moved out of the ally and the cars on the street flashed by headlights blazing in the pouring rain.  
I looked at the passing people on the sidewalk, them taking one look at my ragged cloths and dirty hair before averting their eyes and walking away. I made my way down the side walk hearing some of their muttering when a news paper came to rest on one of my legs. I looked down at it and picked it up as a couple of people looked at me.  
"What is that kid doing with that paper?"  
"Can he even read?"  
I looked at the people before looking at the head line.

**MYSTERY DUCKS SAVE GAME SPECTATORS  
**

**FROM BOMB ATTACK**

I smiled and looked up at a billboard on top of a nearby building showing a team picture of the local hockey team. Carefully I folded the newspaper and continued on, ignoring people's stares. After checking my usual scavenging areas, my stomach was still roaring in hunger.  
I came up dry again and again I placed my hand over my stomach as it roared again. Knowing that I had no choice my gaze turned to a restaurant with blazing lights an ally separating it from an office building. I darted toward it doing my best to keep out of sight.  
I peeked down the ally and eyed the dumpster before checking that the coast was clear. Across from the dumpster was small set of stairs with a small canopy over it and a light to the side. I rounded the corner and slowly made my way toward it when I heard a creaking noise. As fast as I could I took cover next to the dumpster keeping low as I heard someone approach.  
I listened as the person approached the dumpster lifted the lid and drop something inside before leaving. I closed my eyes as relief and new fresh scent drifted into my nose. I smelled somewhat burnt steak, potatoes, some kind of pasta, and the unmistakable smell of cake with frosting.  
My mouth watered as I crept along the edge to the front of the dumpster and was just starting to open it when I heard a patting sound behind me. I whipped around and saw a man standing in the door frame holding a shovel, as he stared daggers at me. I kept crouched low as he walked down the stairs and he towered over me.  
"I thought I told you never to come here again you little thief," he said then brought the shovel over his head.  
He brought it down fast at my head and I caught it before it hit home. Before he could think of what to do next I swept his leg out from under him. He hit the ground hard and I darted out of the ally as fast as I could.  
As I rounded the corner he shouted. "IF I EVER CATCH YOU AROUND HERE AGAIN YOU LITTLE THIEF I'LL CALL THE COPS!"  
When I finally stopped under a canopy of a closed shop my back connected to the wall before sliding down to my bum. I held my knees close to me as I cried and shivered the sounds of the rain fall all around me.  
_How much more can I take I can't even remember the last time I ate and to come so close to a full stomach_ I thought.  
An engine coming close detoured me from my thoughts and I looked up as white motorcycle came close. It stopped in front of me and the helmeted driver looked down at me. I glared up at his unseen face as he looked at me willing to fight back this time he was going to push me around.  
"Awfully late to be out on your own," the rider said.  
"I really don't have much of a choice," I said.  
"Don't you have a home?"  
I shook my head. "These days home is pretty much where ever I can find shelter for the night," I said.  
The rider shifted a little. "Why? Where's your family?" he asked.  
"They were killed in a car accident about a year ago," I said.  
The rider looked forward then back at him. "when was the last time you ate?" he asked.  
I thought for a moment. "I can't remember," I said.  
He looked at me for a moment. "If you want a warm bed and a decent meal tonight get on the bike," he said.  
I looked at him for a moment at first thinking he was nuts but then my stomach roared again. I then slowly stood up and walked up to him looking right into the darkened screen. The two of us looked at each other then I took a steep to the side and climbed onto the bike.  
_It's not like I have somewhere to be or have anything to lose_ I thought.  
He looked at me for a moment then gunned the engine and the two of us took off.


	2. The Next Day

As we rode down the street the rain finally began to die down a little bit and I continued to shiver. The biker looked back at me and at the next red light he slipped off his jacket and handed it to me. I slipped it on gratefully and leaned close to him and my eyes closed.  
A little while later I felt us come to a stop again and I heard something open in front of us and he drove in. I sighed slightly at the warmer air. I cracked my eyes open and gaped.  
We were in what looked like an underground tunnel that was made of some sort of metal. I continued to gape during the rest of the way down the tunnel until we came to what appeared to be a hanger. He parked next to what looked like some kind of armored vehicle with a duck faced hockey mask and stared at the jet above them with the same mask front.  
A circular door in front of us opened as the rider in front of me climbed off. I could barely breathe as I watched human like ducks walk through.  
"Wildwing who's the kid?" asked one with an eye patch.  
"Wildwing?!" I demanded looking at him.  
The rider turned to look at me and it was then that he removed his helmet revealing another human duck.  
I looked from the group to the duck next to me pointing at them. "You're The Mighty Ducks" I said.  
Wildwing nodded. "That's us this is Nosedive, Mallory, Duke, Tanya, and Grin," he said waving his hand at the team who stepped forward.  
I shook hands with each of them and when I shook hands with the last my stomach roared with hunger again.  
Wildwing looked at me then at Nosedive. "Dive can you take him to get a shower and some spare clothes" he said.  
Nosedive nodded and put a hand on my shoulder. "Come on dude we'll get you cleaned up and then you'll be eating like a king" Nosedive said and led me out of the hanger.  
Wildwing  
I watched Nosedive take the kid out of the hanger and Duke came close. "why'd you bring him here?" he asked.  
I looked at him. "Just thought he'd like a warm bed a good meal," I said as we exited the hanger.  
Mallory looked at me. "doesn't he get that at his home?" Mallory asked.  
I shook my head. "I found him on the streets and you should have seen the look in his eyes when I picked him up. It was like a caged animal I'm willing to bet that he would have fought me tooth and nail if I had decided to push him around," I said as we entered the kitchen.  
"But he's got to have family somewhere?" Tanya said as she leaned against the counter.  
I shrugged. "He said his parents were killed in a car crash a year ago," I said as we started making dinner.  
When we were finished Nosedive and the kid came in and I was amazed at the transformation. The kid's hair was no longer greasy and untamed but sleek and shiny and pulled back into a pony tail. He wore a pair of belted blue jeans and a pair of Dive's sneakers and his sports jacket over a black short sleeved shirt.  
He smiled and raised his arms. "how do I look?" he asked then he put a hand on his stomach as it roared again.  
I smiled. "You look good now lets get you something to eat," I said as Grin brought the food onto the table.  
Ten minutes later we all continued to stare at the kid as he continued to down food at a ferocious rate. I looked at some of the guys as they just stared at him food half way to their beaks. When we finally got over it we ate our meals with him eating enough for all of us and more.  
"Aw I don't think we caught your name," I said.  
The kid looked at me his mouth full of noodles and a piece of meat on a fork in one hand an apple in the other. He looked at me as he chewed what was in his mouth and swallowed.  
"Sorry it's Drake, Drake McCloud," he said then started on the meat and apple.  
When I was finished and he was still eating Duke tapped me on the shoulder and nodded towards the hall.  
I nodded. "Dive look after Drake for a moment" I said getting up.  
He nodded as he finally put his burger in his mouth. "yeah I'll watch the eating machine" he said.  
As me and Duke left Mallory gave him a small smack to the back of the head and he looked at her. "what you do that for?" he demanded.  
She looked at him. "Because Drake has been eating like crazy but has enough sense not to talking with his mouth full and also because I wanted to," she said.  
Outside in the hall Drake looked at me leaning against the wall. "Wildwing he can't stay here he'll eat us out of house and home," he said.  
I shrugged. "He probably hasn't eaten in days Duke," I said.  
He nodded. "I know but he still can't stay here we have enough problems on our hands with Dragaunus and all," he said.  
I looked at him then heard Drake laugh in the kitchen probably from one of Dive's jokes. "I know its just he reminded me so much of Dive and me when Dragaunus attacked Puckworld. We'll let him spend the night then in the morning I'll call Klegghorn," I said then the two of us went back in.  
Drake  
I woke the next morning gasping for breath when I got my breath back I fell back in the unfamiliar pillow and bed and I leapt out crouched low ready for anything. I looked around not recognizing my surroundings and the loud snores from the nearby bed then it all came flooding back to me and I relaxed. I slowly and silently I grabbed a few clothes headed into the bathroom as Nosedive continued to snore.  
Half an hour later I came out relishing the second shower I had in over a year dressed and ready for the day while Nosedive continued to snore. Out in the hall I looked left and right wondering where the kitchen was. Finally deciding I walked down the right side.  
After walking for about five minutes past identical circular doors I finally stopped at one and pressed the release. With a hiss the door slid open and I gaped and walked inside. The room was massive with the ramp I was walking on stretched out to a platform with a giant computer on it.  
Reaching it I ran my fingers along the keyboard and it hummed to life.  
"What are you doing?"  
I whipped around to see Duke leaning against the frame of the door a towel over his neck.  
"I'm sorry! I didn't know I wasn't suppose to be in here I was just…" I started then I saw him smile.  
He stated towards me. "Its okay Drake just don't let Tanya catch you putting video games on it. She was spitting nails for a week when she caught Dive doing it" he said.  
I smiled. "I'll remember…" I started.  
"DRAKE!"  
I looked back at the door as Wildwing came into the room as he walked into the room. "What are you doing in here?" he demanded.  
I took a half a step back. "I was looking for the kitchen… I'll… I'll be going" I said then darted out of the room.  
When I found the kitchen at last I ran my fingers through my hair then got some cereal and milk out and poured myself a bowl. As I started to chow down Mallory came in and stared at me.  
I shrugged. "What?" I asked.  
She shrugged. "Nothing it's just I didn't expect you up so early," she said getting her own bowl out.  
I smiled scooping some cereal. "I'm just used to rising with the sun to fight off the rats and mice from biting me to death," I said then bit into the spoonful.  
She dropped the bowl and she scooped it out of mid air. "Rats, mice," she gaped and I nodded.  
"Yeah a pain to wake up to but if you catch one its good eating," I said and her beak turned slightly green.  
I frowned. "Was it something I said?" I asked.  
She shook her head. "Wo not really I just lost my appetite that's all" she said.  
I smiled and laughed a little bit. "I'm kidding, I may live on the streets but I'm not that desperate, but I was close," I said and she looked at me with a hint of ice in her eyes.  
I bared it a little uncomfortably as I took another bite of cereal. "Ok bad joke," I muttered under my breath as she moved to the table her breakfast in hand.  
"You're right very bad joke," she said.  
I looked at her. "Is your hearing that good?" I asked a little stunned and sat down across from her.  
She shook her head. "No I read your lips," she said.  
I nodded. "Military?" I asked.  
She nodded. "Puck World Special Forces and I learned a few other things to like how to read people," she said and I looked at her out of the tops of my eyes.  
She leaned on the table. "You don't really seem like the jokester kind if person and your eyes tell me you've been hurt and your suffering in more ways than one. There is strength in them a lot of it as well as compassion, loyalty, and intelligence. So I must say there is far more to you that meets the eye," she said as we looked at each other.  
I broke contact and ate another spoonful. "How were you hurt?" she asked.  
"Didn't Wildwing tell you?" I asked looking at my bowl eating another bite.  
"No,"  
I finished my cereal and downed the milk. "My parents were killed in a car accident about a year ago been living on the streets ever since," I said standing up and turning to the sink.  
"No other family?"  
I froze my bowl hovering just inside the sink. "The only other relative I had was my grand father we were coming back from his funeral when the accident happened," I said.  
"I'm a little surprised you weren't put into a foster home," she said after a moment.  
I closed my eyes and a small tear formed that I quickly whipped away and I exhaled deeply. Before she could stop me I walked out of the kitchen and down the hall and when I rounded a corner I literally bumped into Nosedive.  
He smiled at me and spread his arms. "Hey man I thought we'd play some games this morning before breakfast and practice," he said.  
I smiled. "Yeah I woke earlier than you and didn't want to wake you. But hey!" I said clapping my hands together.  
"You do mean video games right," I said.  
His grin got bigger. "Is there anything better so let the part-t-t-ty begin," he said and put a hand on my back and led me down the hall.  
For the next hour and a half he and I shouted and laughed at his TV as we played various games. I was doing a victory dance when Wildwing opened the door and cleared his throat.  
Dive turned and looked at him. "Yeah Bro?" he said.  
Wildwing stood straight. "We have practice in ten minutes and our left wing is stuck playing games," he said and Dive slapped his face.  
Ten minutes later we were in the locker room as they put their gear on and Wildwing looked at me as he slipped on his mask.  
"I hope you don't mind watching us practice?" he asked.  
I smiled. "Are you kidding even when I was on the streets I was a big fan I used to watch your games from any shop window that had a TV display," I said.  
I watched them walk out of the lockers and skate onto the ice for practice and I took a seat in the stands near the ice. I watched them start to run a few drills then whipped around as a shout came at me. A somewhat large man in a suit and a short hair cut came at me with a sour look on his face.  
"HEY WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE! SPYING ON THE TEAM PRACTICE! WHO SENT YOU? HOW MUCH ARE THEY PAYING YOU? I WANT ANSERS KID AND I WANT THEM NOW!" he yelled as he reached me and tapped me hard on the chest.  
"PHILL!"  
Me and the guy turned to see Wildwing at the glass looking hard at the guy. "Phil relax he's not a spy," he said.  
The guy put his fists on his hips looking at Wildwing. "How do you know Wildwing?" he demanded.  
Wildwing returned his gaze. "Because I picked him up yesterday and he spent the night here with us and he's our guest," he said.  
The guy looked back at me. "Doesn't he have a home?" he asked.  
"I picked him up off the streets," Wildwing said as the others came close.  
Just then I saw a spark in the man's eyes. "Wildwing you're brilliant. The perfect publicity I can see it now 'Local Hockey Team Houses Homeless Boy'…" he said as he turned his back to me still talking about the publicity.  
I stared open mouthed at his retreating back then looked at the others on the ice and pointed at him. "Who the heck was that?" I asked.  
Nosedive chuckled. "That's Phil our manager and over protective guard dog" he said.  
Wildwing chuckled then looked serious. "Look before he comes back and asks you to tell him your life story why don't you put on that extra pair of skates in the lockers and come out here," he said.  
Ten minutes later I skated out onto the ice and started helping them out with their practice. Around the time practice was ending a pudgy man with thin hair and an over coat came in. When I pointed him out to Wildwing he got a little fidgety and looked at Nosedive.  
"Hey Drake dude we didn't finish that tournament downstairs and I was just getting warmed up," Nosedive said and the two of us skated off the ice with his arm over my shoulder.  
Wildwing  
I skated over to Klegghorn and I noticed the file in his hand and I took off one of my gloves and we shook hands. "I thought you'd be here later," I said.  
"Why is this a bad time Wildwing?" he asked then pulled out a doughnut and started eating.  
I looked at then back at the locker to make sure Drake and Nosedive was out of sight. "No but do have the information that I asked for?" I asked as Mallory and Grin skated close.  
Klegghorn handed me the folder and I opened it and started skimming it.  
"You know when I heard you say that name over the line I jumped two feet in the air. He's had quite a history with us" Klegghorn said.  
"History? How?" Grin asked.  
Klegghorn looked at him. "Running away from his foster family about a week after he was put there. Then all these complaints from people about a homeless boy trespassing, and stealing food and such" he said.  
I looked up from the file. "Will he be inedited?" I asked.  
Klegghorn looked at me and shook his head. "No we talked to most of the local people and they say what he mainly took was already put in the trash and such. But none the less he belongs in a foster home and I'm also here to take him" he said.  
"He's not going anywhere Klegghorn," I said snapping the file closed.  
Klegghorn looked at me. "Wildwing…" he started.  
"Send us what ever needs to be signed but he's staying right here," I said then skated off for the lockers leaving the file with Klegghorn.

**PLEASE REVIEW**


	3. A Haunting Past

As Nosedive led me into the locker room, I felt my anger rise almost to boiling point.

"Drake what's…?" He began to say putting a hand on my shoulder which I shrugged off, irritably.

He frowned and tried to speak again when he was interrupted by the arrival of Wildwing, Grin, and Mallory.

Wildwing paused, eyeing my expression in concern. "Something wrong Drake?"

I ignored the question and asked one of my own. "So what did that cop have to say? I demanded, sitting down to unlace my skates.

Uneasily, Mallory and Grin glanced at Wildwing. Hesitating a moment, he tried to placate me.

"Uh, Drake.....he wasn't...."

I cut him off angrily and spat, "Don't give me that crap that he wasn't a cop. I know one when I see one." I kicked my skates off.

I stood up and faced off with him my hands on my hips. I glared and grit my teeth. "I'm not going back without a fight, Wildwing."

Wildwing sighed and raised his hands in a peace gesture. "Easy Drake. You're not going back. I told him to send us whatever needs to be signed to permit you to stay here with us. If that's what you want."

I was taken aback. That was not the response I expected. Stepping back a bit to give me space to think, I swallowed my anger down then looked back at him once more.

"I do want to stay, but I'm confused! Why are you doing this for me?" I asked.

Wildwing sighed, "Because I see so much of me in you Drake, back when Dragonous first attacked Puckworld. You suffered so much then, but we need to know why you ran away from your foster home

I gave him a hard stare. "Because it was hell there!" I snarled.

"Tell us about it, please." Wildwing coaxed.

I looked at all of them then sighed in defeat. Throwing my hands I turned my back on them and walked over to the lockers and leaned against them my back ot the others. I couldn't look at them as I related the most nightmarish period of my life.

"When my parents died, these people were willing to take me in. But, despite their pleas, I was placed in the foster care system. Now don't get me wrong, I've heard a lot of those places are wonderful and they care a lot for you but there are those that are places of horror and abuse. I got the luck of the draw you might say. I was placed with this guy, who at first I thought was nice, until he showed his true colors. His all sweet and nice show for the government disappeared and I was introduced to a monster."

"What did he do?"

I closed my eyes and a tear escaped it and ran down my face but I ignored it. "He ran a salvage yard and used us as manual labor, working us long hours. When we returned to his home, he would barely feed us and if we complained, he beat us within an inch of our lives. Other time, when he was drunk, he would beat us just for the hell of it. But that wasn't the worst of it. At night he would.....he..."I choked unable to finish.

"Easy, take your time, son." Grin said gently, putting a hand on my shoulder to comfort me.

I swallowed and nodded. ""He would go into the girl's bedrooms. I can still hear their screams, it was awful. One day, halfway through the week, a new girl was dropped off. She couldn't have been more than six. That night, he had been drinking heavily and I heard him go into the new girl's room. Not long after her screams filled the house. She pleaded with him to stop, I couldn't stand it any longer, something snapped inside me and leaped from my bed, raced to her room and dragged him off her. Furious, he beat me so hard I was bleeding and barely able to move. His fun ruined he left the girl sobbing and me laying in my own blood on the floor.

When they thought it was safe, the rest of the kids snuck into the little girl's room. They calmed her and helped nurse me back to health. When I was strong enough, which took a few days, we got together and devised a plan to escape. The next night, we slipped out of the house after he'd gone to sleep. We quickly parted once we were far enough away. I've been on the streets ever since then." I finally finished, feeling drained.

When I turned back to look at the, I saw various looks of rage and sympathy.

I wiped my face with the back of my hand and shook my head. "I don't want or need your pity..." I started to growl angrily.

"And we won't give it!" Wildwing said firmly. "How old are you?" He asked, steering away from the painful subject.

"Why.......wasn't it in the file you got on me?" I said sulkily.

"Actually, I couldn't get past your name." He said softly.

"I turned thirteen last week." I said flatly.

Nodding his head briskly, Wildwing said, "Ok, since you're going to be living with us we have to arrange a few things, but for right now........." He walked over to his locker and took his wallet out.

He then turned to Mallory. "Mallory I am intrusting you with a very important mission...here." He held up a credit card. "This is your license to shop....." He started to say when Mallory took the card and did a little victory dance, cradling the card like it was a precious jewel.

"You're home sweetheart and mommy has soo missed you." She cooed to the card then kissed it making me snort in amusement.

"Just don't go over the limit like you did last time, OK? In the meantime, the rest of us will go to the high school and enroll Drake."

I suddenly felt uncomfortable. "Ah Wildwing…"

Wildwing held up a hand. "I don't want to hear it! You… are… going… back…to…school." He said jabbing his finger at me a few times then the others left the lockers leaving him and Mallory.

"This should be interesting," I muttered as Mallory left to change.

In less than an hour, me and Mallory went to the mall in her car. We got out and strolled inside. She dragged me to the nearest clothes shop where she had me try on a whole wardrobe. When we finished there, with me carrying the bags, we went to the food court for lunch.

We'd just begun to eat, when a bunch of hockey fans saw Mallory and asked for her autograph. She grinned and obliged them. We finished up and finally left the mall, our arms laden with bags.

"Does that happen all the time when you guys go out?" I asked dropping my bags on the back seat then walking up to the passenger seat to get in.

"Often enough but I'm… DRAKE WATCH OUT!" Mallory yelled.

At her words, I spun around, crouching low, hands held up and I saw a car that wasn't paying attention come right at me. The driver spotted me but it was too late. I heard brakes being tromped but it was still going to hit me. Without thinking, I leapt into the air and landed on the hood of the car then rolled off onto the pavement.

As I rolled easily to my feet, breathing hard, the grill of the car just inches from me, I barely heard the frantic apologizes from the driver.

Mallory rushed over to me and looked me over carefully. "Drake, are you all right?" She asked in concern.

"I'm fine," I muttered shakily.

She frowned, uncertainly, "Are you sure?"

"I said I was fine!" I said a bit more sharply, then wrenched myself free and jumped into my seat. I lowered my head and breathed hard.

Moments later, Mallory got into the car, putting the key in the ignition, I could feel her eyes on me as she started the car. When I didn't look at her, I heard a faint sigh as she drove the car out of the parking lot.

**PLEASE TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK**


	4. First Day of School

Mallory started driving back to the Pond in silence with the car top down while I rested my head on the tips of several of my fingers and my eyes closed. I listened to the wind as it passed around us whippingmy hair here and there.

After what felt like five minutes I heard the car come to a stop and I kept feeling Mallory's eyes glancing at me. "You got some nice reflexes," she muttered.

I opened his eyes seeing we're at a red light. "You get them on the streets," I muttered back.

"Right," she said in barely more than a whisper and continued as I watched the light turn green out of the corner of my eye.

We rode the rest of the way in silence and when we pulled into the underground hanger. I started to get out when I felt her hand on my upper arm. I turned and looked at her noticing a glint in her eye.

"Drake you know you can talk to me right," she said.

I nodded. "Yeah I know," I muttered and climbed out.

Later that night after dinner I sat in the stands leaning on my knees looking down at the ice which had a small mist clinging to it. Slowly I lowered my gaze my mind racing to the past.

"Drake…"

My head whipped up and gazed at the mist as it swirled lightly. "Mom…" I muttered.

WILDWING…

I watched Drake in the stands out of his line of sight as he lowered his head and then whipped it up. I watched him look at the ice for a couple more minutes then he stood and left.

"He's been like that since the two of you got back," I said then turned and looked at Mallory who was leaning against the wall.

She lowered her gaze and walked next to me. "Yeah there is definitely more to him than meets the eye, Wildwing, much more," she said and I nodded.

"That I guessed after what you told me," I said then rubbed the bottom of my beak in thought.

"Keep an eye on him," I said then started to walk away.

"You think he's hiding something?" Mallory asked.

I stopped. "Nothing dangerous just himself," I said.

DRAKE…

A couple of days after the incident at the mall I woke from my dreams covered in a light sweet breathing hard. "Am I loosing my mind?" I muttered in the dark then looked at the clock seeing it was eleven at night.

I rolled over on my bed wrapping my arms around my chest. "Come on Drake you got school tomorrow you need sleep," I muttered trying to clear my mind.

I laid there for about half an hour feeling wide awake. "What am I afraid of?" I asked the open air.

I rolled onto my back my hand sandwiched between my head and the pillow. "Where is my enemy?" I asked the dark.

The next day Wildwing on his motorcycle drove up to the front entrance of the high school me wearing denim jacket, belted jeans, a t-shirt, and a pair of sneakers.

It was a large brick building with the center where the entrance towered over the roof with a waving flag protruding from it. In front of the entrance a small set of stairs with thick brick railings on both ends and middle descended to a large parking lot with a mix of motorcycles and cars. Kids were hanging out in the parking lot near car or bike or on or at the stairs.

"Either me, Mallory, Grim, Tanya, or Duke will pick you up later," he said as I slipped off the bike my backpack over my shoulder.

"What about Dive?" I asked slipping my helmet off.

He took my helmet and secured to the back seat. "Are you kidding me? Dive? At a high school?" he said and I chuckled understanding.

"You got a point see you guys later," I said.

He patted me on the shoulder. "Have a good day!" he said as he drove off and I waved.

As he rounded the corner I exhaled and turned back to the school. "Let the games begin," I muttered and started up the stairs, when a sound met my ear and I turned.

I saw a group of kids a couple on bikes hassling a girl with long dark brown hair wearing a denim jacket with the selves cut away navy pants with boots. "… Oh girl what ever happened to us?" one boy was asking leaning on his bike.

"For the last time there… is… no… _us_! There hasn't been for over a year now you and your goons Leave! Me! Alone!" she barked and started to push her way through the group only for the guy to grab her.

"_Say that again!_" he growled.

Before I knew it I was down there and pulling her out of his hands. "Take a hint buddy she's not interested," I said.

Glaring at me he slipped of his bike and we stood toe to toe. "You want to make something of it punk?" he said.

My eye brows arched. "Oh so you admit you're a punk?" I said.

"Why you…," he said stepping forward fists coming up.

"MR. ANDERSON!" shouted a voice behind us and I turned and saw a man in a suit with glasses with a stern look on his face walk up.

Once he reached us he crossed his arms glaring. "I know this is a stupid question. But is there a problem here?" he said.

I turned back to the guy in front of me who was looking hard at the man. "No Mr. Johnson no problem," he muttered then glared at me.

"But this isn't over _punk_!" he growled at me tapping me on the chest.

"Oh it had better be Mark Anderson now get to class!" Mr. Johnson barked a pointing the Mark and his friends left.

Then Mr. Johnson turned on me. "You don't seem familiar what's your name?" he asked me.

"I'm new sir, my name is Drake McCloud," I said holding out my hand.

He blinked. "You're Drake McCloud?" he said.

I nodded rubbing the back of my neck. "Yes sir I guess I didn't make much of a first impression," I said.

He shook his head. "I guess not by the way I'm Principal Johnson and this is Aoife Adair," he said waving a hand at the girl who looked at me with a deep frown on her face and arms crossed.

He then handed me a folded piece of paper from his inside pocket. "This is your class schedule. And Aoife your to show him around," he said look from me to the girl.

She gapped at him. "But sir…" she said.

"No exceptions Aoife he's your responsibility," he said then walked away.

She glared at his retreating back. "Look I'm sorry if I embarrassed you Aoife…" I started.

"Xena!" she barked.

I blinked. "What?"

She glared at me. "I prefer Xena! And because of you I'm stuck babysitting a newbie who probably won't live to hear the last bell ring!" she said shrugging her bag on one shoulder and started to walk away.

I blink then looked down at my schedule. "Well can you at least tell me where Algebra is?" I said darting after her and I heard her moan.

Ten minutes later we sat down at the same table in the Algebra classroom as she avoided looking at me. The room was almost barren with neatly ordered tables with just as neatly arranged chairs. As I looked around the room with two large windows that looked out to the street I couldn't help but get a sense of coldness from the room.

"So who was Romeo?" I asked looking at the big teachers desk with neatly sacked papers wit pens and marks in a plain holder.

She glanced at me. "A mistake that won't go away or as you said take a hint. His name is Mark Anderson and his posse as he calls them. He gets lot of slack around here because his dad in on the school board," she said and I nodded.

"And how long were you two dating?" I asked and she glared.

"Three weeks," she muttered then dropped a math book in front of me with a large thump.

_I think I struck a nerve_, I thought as the teacher came in.

"Good morning class now it is my understanding that we have a new student to join our ranks would he please rise and introduce himself," he said laying his brief case on the teachers desk in a almost dreary voice.

I sighed and stood. "Hi I'm Drake McCloud…" I started.

"That's enough Mr. McCloud now I just hope you're not as much of a dunderhead as the rest of your peers is," he said very impartially and my eyebrows arched in surprise as I retook my seat.

As he turned his back to us to write on the board I leaned close to Xena. "Is he usually like this?" I asked.

She let out a puff of air. "Are you kidding your catching him on a good day," she muttered back.

I let out a puff of air and opened my book. "Some teacher," I muttered.

"Professor!" Xena barked under her breath.

I glanced at her. "What?" I asked.

"he prefers to be called Professor Stephen apparently he's got a doctorate in Mathematics but no collage will take him, for obvious reasons now you'd better sit up straight and keep your eyes on him or else," she muttered and I nodded.

As I started flipping through my math book glancing at the pages as I heard the Professor continues to write on the board. A few minutes later the scratching of chalk on blackboard stopped.

"Now by the end of this semester I fully expect the lot of you to at least make a plausible attempt at this problem. And get at least a good part of it right… Mr. McCloud!" Professor Stephen said barking the last part and I looked up at him.

He frowned down at me from his desk. "Mr. McCloud why don't you show us your attention skills, give us your first attempt at the problem," he said with half a sneer on his face waving his hand at the complex problem behind him.

The problem covered half the black board and combined most of the elements of Algebra and other mathematics. My eyes narrowed as I followed it.

"Four over pie sir," I said at last after a minute.

A sly smile spread across his face and he started to turn back to the board. "No Mr. McCloud that is absolutely… correct," he said the last part slowly as he turned back to look at me eyes wide.

One by one the rest of the class looked at me all with the same open mouthed look on their faces. "Do you mind showing us how you came to that solution?" Professor Stephen said holding out a stick of chalk.

I shrugged and closed my book. "Sure," I said standing up.

I walked to the front of the class and after taking the chalk from him began to solve the problem. When I was finished the rest of the board was covered and I held out the chalk back to him as he stared at me.

I glanced from him to the board and back again. "You know sir if I did it too fast for you I could slow down. Or I could do it in Japanese if you want," I said and I heard a couple people snort and Professor Stephen frowned.

He snatched the chalk away from me. "Please take your seat," he muttered and I nodded and returned to my seat.

As I sat down every eye was still on me and I turned to Xena who was gawking at me like everyone else. "You'd think nobody saw anyone solve an advanced Algebra problem," I said.

"Its not just that it's that you solved it in about a minute and this is your first lesson and the other thing," she said.

I blinked ten thought for a second then understood. "Oh that I thought he could use a lesson in humility," I muttered rubbing the back of my neck.

"_Lesson_! You schooled him! If you keep this up just about everyone in the school will have a bone to pick with you!" she said.

"Well what can I say? I don't like bullies, now what class is after this one," I said.

She gaped at me. "You got more guts in you then you need and if you're not careful they'll get you killed. And to make it worse gym is next and its dodge ball day," she said.

I smiled. "Sounds like fun," I muttered turning back to the black board.

WILDWING…

I was lying on a bench lifting weights with Grim spotting me. I grunted up the last two reps and with Grim's help laid the bar on the rack and sat up and drank a little water while Mallory and Duke sparred in the ring. I watched her nail Duke with a turning side kick knocking him into one corner.

He laughed as he steadied himself on his feet. "Next time we spar Mallory we're doing it with swords," he said as he started taking off his gear.

"What's wrong old duck bones creaking?" Dive asked and Duke glared at him.

Duke jumped out of the ring a steel glint in his eye as he stared Nosedive down. "Say that again!" he growled.

Dive gulped. "Ok sorry," he muttered in a shaky voice.

I chuckled and patted him on the shoulder then turned as I heard the door hiss open and I turned as Tanya came in. She had a small smile on her face and I crossed my arms looking at her.

"What's got you in a good mood?" I asked.

She smiled wider. "It's finished," she said and everyone looked at her.

I dived behind the wreckage of a car on its side as laser fire went off where I had been a second before dust kicking up into the air. I crouched low on one knee and used my mask to see through the wreckage as the attack drone came closer and closer. Just before it reached the wreck I rolled out and my shield on and after some laser fire bounced off it I fired my puck launcher and the head of the drone shot of its shoulders.

Breathing hard I looked around the wrecked city of Anaheim around small dust devils swirling around me. My mind flashed back to Puckworld when Dragonous had taken over how everything had been destroyed and we had been enslaved until Canard rescued me and Dive. Then slowly I watched the world dissolve around me until I was standing in a bare room with me as the only occupant.

I turned as the door hissed open behind me and the others walked in as my Armor disappeared and I removed The Mask of Drake DuCane. "Tanya this new Battle Simulator is great you really out did yourself," I said meeting them part of the way.

Her grin widened as we all walked outside the simulator. "What did you expect Wildwing now we can train for any scenario in any climate or place. And it's all controlled by this panel here that up links directly to DRAKE 1," she said as she pointed out the panel with touch screen buttons.

I nodded and when she was done explaining how to use the panel I went to the kitchen and starting rummaging through the fridge. "What are you thinking of Wildwing?" said Mallory's voice behind me.

I straitened up an apple in hand and turned to look at her. After a moment while rubbing the underside of my beak as I walked to the counter and turning my back to it leaned back against it.

"Its Drake isn't?" she asked walking up to me and I nodded.

"You don't have to worry about him if he's been living on the street for the past year he can take care of himself," she said.

I nodded. "That's just it the way he acts more like a teenager when he should be acting more like a man, and he does at times. Then there's those times in the past few days that every night after dinner he goes up to the stadium and just looks at the ice and the mist over it and he still has that animal look in his eye," I said then bit into my apple.

"He's a lot like you," she muttered and I looked at her.

"When you and Dive joined the team you had that same look in your eye. And became something else as we went on our mission it became something else," she said.

I smiled. "I guess you can look at it that way," I said.

She smiled. "He'll come around he just needs time after all there's more to him that meets the eye," she said.

DRAKE…

I dived over a ball that had been aimed at me and after rolling back on my feet hurled the ball in my hand the sound of squeaking sneakers all around me. It bounded off the chest of the one who had thrown at me and groaning as he walked away then rolled off to the side and another ball hit the ground where I had been. I continued to roll for a couple of feet and as I rolled back onto my feet grabbing another ball turned and fired.

"A lot of people seem to be gunning for me," I said and I leaned to the side from another ball next to Xena.

"Yeah and look who's doing the gunning!" she barked catching a ball aimed at her then hurled it at a second person.

"I know your old boyfriend and his buddies," I said pushing a kid down and catching a ball in mid flight with my other hand.

"Up yours!" she barked jumping up to dodge a ball aimed at her feet.

"You know I'm getting a little tired of the hostility so how about we just become friends!" I said and she glared at me out of the corner of her eye.

"Why not, besides you got guts newbie," she muttered as a coupe kids on our side got knocked out.

"Is it usually this one sided?" I asked as I dodged another ball and watched a couple more kids get knocked out.

"Most of the time especially since Mark is the star Quarterback," she said back to me.

"Really and the rest are muscle heads," I said catching another ball aimed at me and dodging a second.

"Your not thinking of giving a another lesson are you?" she asked.

"No just a double team, you in?" I said.

"Why not it sounds like fun," she said and spun around me as another ball was aimed at her.

"Ready?" I asked knocking a ball away with the one in my hands.

"Locked and loaded," she said behind me.

After catching a second I spun to the side hurling both in rapid succession one nailing two kids in the hard in the chest as Xena hurled one of hers. As her ball bounced off one of Mark's friends and she tossed her other to me as she kicked anther into her hand and we fired. Working as a team we took out Mark's friends one by one until only he was left.

The three of us looked at each other as we walked along our sides. "You want him?" Xena asked and I nodded.

"I guess we find out who's the big dog?" Mark asked as he picked up a pair of balls.

I nodded. "Yep who's all bark and no bite so, you feeling lucky punk?" I said doing my best Clint Eastwood and we faced off.

_John Wayne eat your heart out,_ I thought my free fingers twitching.

After a couple seconds he hurled both balls at me. I spun around down onto one knee narrowly dodging both and hurled mine at him. It whistled through the air and collided in the middle of his face knocking him back a couple steps.

"GAME!" shouted the gym teacher and I climbed to my feet.

"Nice shot," Xena muttered coming close as Mark glared at me with a look that could kill as people headed off for the lockers.

After we changed in the lockers me and Xena walked down the hallway on our way to lunch talking. "Why do you prefer to be called Xena?" I asked with people chatting around us.

She chuckled shifting her bag on her shoulder. "Are you kidding me Aoife I got picked on every day at school until I saw Xena on TV," she said and I nodded.

"Actually it's kind of ironic because Aoife is an Irish name that translates as Warrior Princess so either way you're a Warrior Princess," I said.

She looked at me frowning. "I never thought of it that way," she muttered as we reach the corner lockers on one side.

As we started rounded the corner a small sound met my ear and a couple people moved quickly ahead of us. In a flash I spun around and grabbed Marks fist and arm in mid flight aimed for the back of my head. I used his momentum and threw him against the lockers which rang with a loud clang and he slammed against them back first.

He gave a grunt of pain and turned around to face me. "You wiseass!" he spat coming at me throwing another punch.

I ducked under it and spun around to face him as the punch carried him behind me. "Walk away Mark," I said.

He threw another punch and leaned out of the way and spun around him. "Mark it was just a game!" Xena barked behind me.

"You stay out of this!" he barked as he threw a couple more punches and I dodged them and moved around him.

When I was behind him my I felt arms wrap around me. "I got him Mark! Now…," one of Mark's friends barked behind me.

He starting to swing me around when I was in front of the wall I ran up the wall out of his grasp and landed behind him with a flip. Everyone looked at me as I glanced from Mark to his friend.

"He's all yours," his friend said and Mark charged throwing punch after punch that I dodged.

Near her I heard someone ask Xena, "Should we help him?"

And she answers, "Which one?"

"WILL YOU SHUT UP!" Mark yelled turning on her fist raised.

In a flash I sized his wrist and twisted it and he grimaced in pain as he turned to look at me and the rage on my face. "I don't like bullies," I growled and rammed my other fist hard up into his gut.

The whole crowd around me was silent as Mark fell to his knees gasping for air arms wrapped around his gut and me standing over looking down at him. After a few seconds I looked up at Xena.

"Drake…," Xena said stepping up to me.

"Step back!" I barked pushing her away and a second later Mark threw up all over the floor where I had been.

"Whoa," she muttered as I just looked at Mark then at my open hands.

My gaze never left them as they slowly closed into fists my mind racing then turned at quick footsteps. Mr. Johnson quickly came up the hall way and the group parted when he reached them and took one look at Mark who was now on his side moaning.

He then looked at the crowd around him. "Get him to the nurse's office! And what the heck happened here!" he barked.

Mark's friends stepped forward and helped him to his feet. "It was McCloud he started…" one started.

"That's a lie! Mr. Johnson it was Mark who started it he tried to sucker punch Drake, when he tried to get Mark to back off he!" Xena said pointing at the friend.

"Grabbed Drake from behind to hold him for Mark to hit him until Drake broke free. Drake only threw a punch when Mark turned on me," she said.

Mr. Johnson looked her through her story then looked around. "Is that true?" he asked the crowd and a few gave a few affirmatives.

He nodded then looked at me. "I still want to see you in my office," he said and the two of us walked away.

WILDWING…

I and Tanya were bent over DRAKE 1 as it displayed recent data. "Dragonous has been quite far too long," I said.

She nodded glancing at me. "Yeah the bomb attack on the stadium and him nearly taking control of the world's nuclear arsenal was so long ago. Especially in these past couple weeks," she said turning her back to the computer and leaning against it.

I looked at her as she crossed her arms tapping her finger against her arm and I shrugged. "Ok I admit it I'm worried about him," I said standing strait and rubbing my fingers through the feathers on my head.

"Good because if you weren't I'd call a doctor after all we're supposed to be his parents now," she said.

"Foster parents," I corrected.

"Close enough," she said and the phone rang on the opposite wall.

I looked at her over my shoulder as I walked over and picked up the receiver. "Hello," I said into the mouth piece.

"Hello I'm Mrs. Stamfeild secretary of Principle Johnson at Roosevelt High eh Wildwing Falshblade?" a nervous voice said.

"Yes," I said.

"The foster father of Drake McCloud?" Mrs. Stamfeild asked.

"One of them, is he ok? Did we need to sign some more papers?" I said a little worried.

"No, no he's fine and all the papers are in order but we need you to come here," Mrs. Stamfeild said.

"Why?" I asked.

"Well…" Mrs. Stamfeild started.

I listened as she started to explain and when she finished my beak as open in shock. "He what!" I almost shouted.

**PLEASE REVIEW**


	5. Of Freinds and the Gifted

DRAKE

I sat on the bench in the waiting room outside Mr. Johnson's office, my elbow on my knees, head bowed in thought. I sat in silence as the secretary typed at her computer and every now and then I would feel her eyes on me.

After what seemed like ten minutes, I felt a hand on my shoulder and looked up to see Xena with a slice of pizza on a paper plate and a water bottle in her hands.

"Thought you could use some lunch," she said quietly, sitting down next to me after handing me the plate and bottle.

"Thanks, I am hungry," I said and took a bite of the pizza.

When I was about to take a second bite, she asked, "so… where did you learn how to fight?"

I froze in mid bite, sighed and lowered the pizza to give her my attention. "No where! I just learned a few things living on the streets is all." I shrugged then returned to eating my pizza.

"The streets?"

I wished she'd drop it but answered anyway after I'd swallowed my food. "I lived on the streets for a year until a few weeks ago!"

"Wow, cool!"

I stared at her as if she were insane before snapping bitterly, "You think it's cool to spend your days searching for food while ducking the police and avoiding restaurants with very fat chefs who would go after you with a meat cleaver for raiding their dumpsters. You think it's cool to go hungry for days and sleep in boxes that, when you wake up, you find cockroaches and rats crawling all over you? Does that really sound like fun to you?" My stare is cold and flat by the time I finish.

She holds my gaze for less than a second before lowering her eyes, shoulder hunched. "I guess not," she answers in a small voice and allows me to eat my food in peace.

I finish the pizza and nearly all the water. I feel much better. She eyes me cautiously before daring to speak to me again.

"So are your parents coming for you?"

"No, foster parents," I say blandly.

"What happened to your parents?"

I give her a flat stare and she lowers her gaze again. "Sorry, I know it's none of..."

I rudely interrupt her by saying, "They're dead."

She blinked at me in surprise. "Why tell me?"

I shrug my shoulders. "You'd have found out anyway."

Suddenly, a shout coming from the hall outside where we sat grabbed our attention. Within moments, a man in a disheveled business suit barreled in, eyes darting everywhere.

"WHERE IS HE? WHERE IS THE BASTARD WHO TRIED TO KILL MY SON!" He bellowed, spit flying from his mouth.

My eyebrows arched in surprise at that accusation then leaned closer to Xena to whisper a question, "Mr. Anderson I presume?" She nodded as he turned toward us.

He held me in his gaze for a second, angrily, then stabbed an accusing finger in my face. "YOU! YOU TRIED TO KILL MY SON!"

Sighing uncomfortably, I moved his finger out of my face and stared into his. "Mr. Anderson, despite what you were told or what you believe, I'm not the one who threw the first punch."

He glared down at me and started shaking his finger in my face again. "You are done here whoever you are!" He snarled.

A voice suddenly interrupted him. "I think that's my job, Mr. Anderson." We turned and saw Mr. Johnson standing in his office doorway and frowning at us.

"Well, I want him out of this school Johnson, else you'll be out of a job!" The man snarled, turning his pointing finger now at Mr. Johnson.

Shaking my head a little, I leaned closer to Xena and murmured, "Now I see where Mark gets it from."

"What was that you little brat?" The man rounded on me in a heartbeat, his fists clenched threateningly.

I stared up at him a moment then slowly climbed to my feet. "I said, you're like your son...an egocentric, opinionated, bully who thrives on the misery of others to get your kicks," I told him coldly. The room fell silent.

I could almost see the steam issuing from his ears and one of his balled fists was drawing back.

"Why you little…" he hissed furiously.

Suddenly, a giant stepped between the aggressor and me so the furious man ended up striking the giant's chest instead. The giant grabbed the wrist that had struck him and held it firm. Mr. Anderson's mouth dropped open as he stared up into the stern beaked face above him.

"You wouldn't want to disturb my inner peace and tranquility would you?" The giant rumbled warningly.

"Grin!" a stern voice said from behind him. In response, Grin grunted but let Mr. Anderson's wrist go.

The man rubbed his wrist while not taking his eyes off the giant.

I leaned around Grin and saw Wildwing, Mallory, and Duke arriving to stand with us.

Suddenly I felt very small. "Uh...Hi guys, where's Tanya and Dive?" I asked meekly.

Wildwing crossed his arms. "Tanya had work she had to finish. Do you remember what I said when I dropped you off?" He asked, giving me a stern look.

I nodded. "Yeah 'Dive at a high school!' So... am I in trouble?" I asked trying to grind my foot into the floor.

"In something's yes...in others… I actually agree with your actions," Wildwing responded easily then glanced over at Mr. Anderson giving the man a cool look.

"Eh, sorry to interrupt, but if we could move this to my office...," Mr. Johnson asked cautiously, gesturing to his door.

I stepped back with Xena, who stared at the Ducks open mouthed as they stepped forward in a group. As they reached the indicated doorway, Wildwing put out a hand on Grin's chest, halting the big duck.

"Could you wait out here?" He asked. Grin stared at him, a puzzled look in his eyes.

"Look, you can barely get through that door, besides the office is kinda small and won't hold all of us," Wildwing said reasonably.

Grin sighed and conceded that was true with a shrug of his shoulders and by stepping back then taking a chair in the waiting area, without comment.

As I started to follow the rest of the group into the office, Xena grabbed my upper arm, leaned close and hissed, "They are your foster parents?"

"Yeah," I said shrugging.

She gaped at me for a moment then whispered excitedly, "You think you could get me an autograph?"

"I'll see what I can do," I answered softly, smiling and patting her upper arm before stepping into Mr. Johnson's office.

Once everyone was in the room, Mr. Johnson took his seat behind his desk after indicating I sit in the chair in front of the desk. Wildwing took the second chair next to me. As there were no more chairs, Duke and Mallory chose to lean against the wall near the door while Mr. Anderson moved to the opposite side of the room from us to stand.

We all looked at each other for a moment then Mr. Johnson gave a sigh. "Well this has been quite a first day," he said blandly.

I turned my head when I saw Mr. Anderson step closer to the desk. "Yes it has and I say this boy should get the old heave ho," he snapped.

Mallory suddenly stepped forward, her beak barely an inch from Anderson's face. "Oh yeah? Well I say…"

"Mallory!" Wildwing snapped warningly then turned back to Mr. Johnson and indicated for him to continue.

He directed his next comments to Mr. Anderson. "Considering that it was Mark who threw the first punch and I have witnesses to that fact, he will certainly be faced with suspension at the very least. While Drake, who acted in self defense for himself and another, will most likely get barely a slap on the wrist. And before you start, Anderson, no matter what the ruling is, we have no power to punish Drake anyway," he finished firmly, opening the file on his desk.

"What is that supposed to mean!" Anderson barked slapping his palms on the desk.

"Yeah what is that supposed to mean?" Wildwing asked as well, frowning and glancing at me.

Mr. Johnson sighed. "I was attempting to get to that if everyone would just give me a chance. It was the main reason I asked Drake to see me as well. I had a rather humorous phone conversation with Drake's old principal. It seems Drake here already graduated from high school with honors years ago with, I might add, full scholarships to some of the top schools in the country when he turns eighteen."

The room fell silent and I swore it was quiet enough to hear a pin drop.

I turned to look at Wildwing whose beak had dropped and his head was now looking at me in surprise. "This was what you were trying to tell me, wasn't it...just before I said you were going back to school?" He asked, shaking his head.

I tried to keep the smile from my face as I nodded and said, "Yeah."

This apparently didn't mean much to Anderson as he demanded, "So what does that have to do with what happened to my son?"

Mr. Johnson looked up at him as he closed the file before him. "It means, since Drake is already out of school, we can't discipline him and if you're thinking of taking this to court, let me save you the trouble and warn you that you'd be laughed at since it was a simple case of self defense and Mark broke the school rules against fighting. He is the one that will be punished," Johnson said flatly.

Anderson could only stare at Johnson then, with another slap to the desk, he stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind him. All those left in the room sat in silence for a second then hearing the outer officer also slam, Duke let out a puff of air behind me.

"Well that was eventful," he remarked then I felt his hand on my shoulder.

"So what happens now?" Wildwing asked Johnson.

Mr. Johnson leaned forward resting his elbows on the desk, his hands clasped together. "Well, he's no longer a part of the school system since he's graduated but since he is too young to hold a job yet, we could certainly use him as a tutor for our students that need help. But, that's totally up to Drake, of course."

I studied him a moment then nodded. "I'll give it some thought, sir. But right at the moment, I think it's best if I lay low a bit since Mark's friends might want to get even for his treatment," I said cautiously, getting to my feet.

Mr. Johnson nodded. "I can certainly understand and agree that's a good idea but before you go there is something else we need to deal with," he commented, taking a note from his pocket. "This is from your math teacher. He says you humiliated him before the whole class. Is this true?"

I shrugged. "I asked him, sir, that since the class was Algebra, why was there an trigonometry problem on the board. I felt this was unfair to the students who were just learning Algebra and wouldn't know this was incorrect. He was the one who decided I was being arrogant and disruptive."

Johnson frowned. "He forgot to mention that little fact… now I'll need to talk to him. Alright, Drake, you're free to go but please let me know when you want to return to help tutor."

"I will, thank you, sir," I said politely then Johnson and Wildwing both stood and shook hands before we turned and left. I huffed out a sigh, glad to be leaving here, at least for now.

Outside in the office area, Xena was trying to coax Grin into making conversation, but he ignored her as he sat with his eyes closed, breathing evenly. When we approached he opened his eyes and gave me a small smile.

"Well?"

I looked up at Wildwing who sighed, placing his hands on his hips. "I'm still processing all this so I'll tell you in the Migrater, Grin," he said shaking his head.

"Wildwing is it ok if I meet you back at the Pond later? I have, a few things to think about," I requested quietly.

He studied me, concern in his eyes. "I don't…" he started to say.

"Wildwing! I've lived on the streets for a year. I think I can handle a couple of hours on my own," I reminded him.

Sighing, he finally relented. Ruffling my hair, he said, "Ok, but when you get home, we are going to talk about what happened her."

"Hey!" I hiss in annoyance, shoving his hand away.

Turning away, I noticed Xena and started to say, "I'll catch up with you la…" then stopped at the hopeful, eager look on her face.

I closed my eyes remembering what she'd asked. I turned back to the Ducks and introduced them to her. "Guys, this is a new friend of mine. Her name is Xena. Xena this is Wildwing, Mallory, Duke, and Grin. She…"

"...wants to know if I could have your autographs!" She blurted out impatiently taking out a notebook and pen.

I raised my hands, smiling. "Look I'll catch you guys later," I said half laughing and left the office.

WILDWING

I watched him go as Mallory took the girl's pen and began to sign her note pad. She turned to me when she was done and inquired softly, "What's wrong?"

I looked at her and she saw that certain look in my eyes and sighed. "Should I take Duke with me?" She asked. I nodded.

As soon as Duke had signed the note book, Mallory grabbed him by the upper arm and tugged him to the door Drake had disappeared through.

I turned my attention back to the girl. Grin was just finishing signing her autograph book. I took it next as well as the pen and smiled at her as I asked, "okay, who do I make it out to again?"

DRAKE

I caught a bus at the corner near the school and climbed aboard, finding a empty seat easily. I drifted into my own thoughts as it began to roll down the street. My mind wandered over the events of the day and pay no attention to my surroundings. By the time I came back to myself, I noticed the bus was just pulling into the downtown mall. I climbed to my feet, adjusted my backback on my shoulders then stepped off the bus.

I walked across the expanse of sidewalk in front of the mall and made for the doors. Stepping through I looked about without really seeing anything as I began to head for the escalator.

"Wildwing…" I growled in my mind as I rode it up to the top floor.

Stepping off, I headed for a nearby magazine and snack food stand and smiled. Beside it holding a fly swatter sat an old Japanese man who still had plenty of color in his hair and wide dark glasses over his eyes. Beside him on a small table next to the chair he sat on stood was a lone bonsai tree with a bowl for his money.

As I approached, his head turned toward me and smiled. "Unless my ears are deceiving me Drake McCloud approaches," he said warmly then stood so we could embrace.

"You always know it's me Satoshi. Sometimes I wonder if you really are blind," I said warmly as he sat back down. I lay my backpack on the ground beside his table.

"Well, considering how long we've known each other, I should and was that new clothes and a back pack I felt on you?" He asked, smiling, waving his head slightly left and right.

I gave a chuckle and his smile broadened. "You've been found haven't you, my lost tiger?" He crowed, knowing the answer.

"You could say that."

"That is good to hear. I was getting a little tired of handing you scraps like one would a dog. Tell me, who are you staying with?" He requested.

"You know the local hockey team?" I asked.

"Of course I had to listen to you give a play by play recount of every one of their games whenever you stopped by and now I'll hear no end to it if you're living with them!" He said, pleased, pausing to thank a guy for paying for a paper he bought.

I frowned at him. "Really? Well it's better than being here listening to you go on about the things that happen in your day," I said in mocking humor.

"Have you really learned so little from what your father taught you…"

"Satoshi!" I snapped sounding harsher than I meant to, then looked away breathing hard before turning back to him.

He was silent for a second as a fly started buzzing around him and he lifted his fly swatter slightly. "It helps to talk about it, Drake. I loved your father like a son and I miss him too," he murmured softly trying to coax me to talk.

I just shook my head then picked up my bag. "I know you did and I'll come around again soon but I have to go take care of something. Would you give this to two people who will be here shortly," I said handing him a note. He took it and nodded.

"Stop by anytime, you know where I'll be," he said gently, as his head followed the fly.

I started to walk away then paused to look back a moment longer. The fly landed on the table and Satoshi hovered the swatter over it. "Ten o'clock high!" I barked suddenly. The swatter came down slightly off its target.

"Drake this is personal!" He snapped at me then quicker than a snake, gave the hand of a boy a sharp rap before the kid could snatch money from his bowl.

"It's called a job you punk," he barked sternly after the kid who had darted away.

I smiled before turning away and walking off.

MALLORY

Duke and I watched from a distance as Drake talked to the old blind man then left, hoisting his pack over his shoulder. When we were a good distance away, I tapped Duke on the upper arm and we followed.

As we were passing the old man, his head jerked toward us. "Excuse me," he said loudly. I paused to look at him in surprise.

"Sorry we don't…" I started to say.

"Are you the two following Drake?" He asked casually, making us blink in shocked surprise.

After a moments silence by us, he smiled and held out a folded piece of paper from his pocket. "He wanted me to give this to you," he said easily, holding it out to us.

Stunned, I took it then took a swipe at a fly that had just landed on the table next to him as I unfolded the note. When I read it my beak dropped open in disbelief, turning to search the area where Drake had disappeared. Curious, Duke grabbed the note and read it aloud.

"Duke...Mallory you don't have to follow me. I'll see you back at the pond... Drake."

"Damn, he's good," I muttered, shaking my head.

**SORRY IT TOOK SO LONG PLEASE REVIEW**


	6. Talks and Fears

Drake

From the next floor down, I watched Mallory and Duke converge with Satoshi after he gave them the note. A moment later, they turned and walked away while I watched them until they were out of my field of vision. When they were gone, I sighed, shaking my head, then turned and walked away.

'Mallory, for someone who's Puckword Special Forces, I thought you'd be better at stealth,' I thought, walking into a bathroom.

Once inside, I went to the sink and rubbed water over my face after slipping my bag to the floor.

'What happened today? At least it wasn't a complete black out, this time,' I thought then looked up at the mirror.

I stared at my reflection for a moment before muttering, "What's happening to me?"

Duke

As me and Mallory left the mall, a part of me was still amazed that Drake had made us so easily. My mind flashed to my old life on Puckworld...all the jobs I had pulled off without a witness or a hitch...and yet a thirteen year old human child did it without even turning around. As we walked down the street, I glanced over at Mallory and noted she seemed to be struggling with the same thing I was.

"Don't take it so hard Mallory," I said as casually as I could.

She turned and gave me a confused frown. "What?" she asked.

I shrugged. "The kid's from the streets. He's obviously learned to be on the alert to anyone following him," I clarified as we reached our bikes.

Giving me a hard look, Mallory picked up her helmet and snarled at me. "Duke I'm from the streets." She turned away, jamming her helmet on before climbing on her bike and taking off with a roar of exhaust.

I blinked in surprise as I watched her begin to grow smaller as she raced ahead of us down the street. "Touchy," I muttered before jumping on my bike and taking off after her.

Wildwing

I was doing laps around the ice to calm myself after being told by Mallory and Duke they had lost Drake after he had made them. I was plainly shocked by this news. The kid shouldn't have been able to have spotted the guys at all.

After what felt like an hour, I skated over to the wall and drank deeply from my water bottle, my eyes spotting Drake coming down the stairs.

"Drake!" I called out causing him to turn to look at me before he could enter the locker room.

I motioned for him to come to me and after a moments hesitation, he did so. He said nothing as he waited to see what I wanted.

"How was it out there?" I asked.

He shrugged. "It was fine." He said nothing more and I sighed.

"Look, Drake, we need to have a talk about that fight..." I began when he interrupted.

"Wildwing, we both know I didn't start that fight!" He stated flatly, his expression mulish.

"Yeah...well...you sure as hell finished it," I barked back. He dropped his bag and crossed his arms, glaring at me

"I did try to get him to walk away, Wildwing!" He snapped.

"You should have been the one to walk away!" I snapped back jabbing my finger at him.

"I couldn't!" He almost shouted.

For a split second, I saw a look in his eyes...was it worry?... Fear? "What do you mean 'I couldn't'?" I asked, carefully.

He was silent for a second. "What was I suppose to do? Let him hit Xena?" He demanded.

I shook my head. "No, but Drake there's always another way," I said patiently.

"Then why are you fighting, Dragaunus?"

He and I looked at each other as I tried to find an answer that wouldn't prove his point. Then I sighed giving up. He slowly nodded and picked up his bag.

"That's what I thought," he said before turning to walk into the lockers.

I stood there on the ice for a few minutes longer then after doing a couple more laps, went into the lockers to take the elevator down.

At the base, I wandered aimlessly in deep thought outside Grim's room before finally knocking then pressing the release when he didn't answer after a few minutes.

In the dim candlelight of the room, I saw he was sitting in a lotus position, his meditation crystals before him. I quietly walked over and sat down next to him trying not to cough from the strong smell of incense. After a moment he opened his eyes and looked down at me.

"Something troubles you my friend?" He asked gently.

I sighed and looked away, feeling his knowing eyes on me.

"You need not worry about him. Drake is strong. I sensed it the moment we met," he said placing a massive hand on my shoulder to offer me comfort.

"You don't have to tell me that, not to mention too damn smart for his age," I muttered, irritably.

"Yes, but he is strong nonetheless both in body, as we thought at first, but in mind as well. He has suffered greatly...first, losing his family then nearly getting killed by one who was supposed to protect him. But he's risen above it and became a protector of the others suffering with him. And what happened today awakened that protector side of him. He could no more let that punk hit that girl than we could have let Dragaunus continue to rule over Puckworld. And because of all this his inner peace is greatly disturbed," Grin said gravely.

"Disturbed? How?" I asked dreading the answer.

"In the words of my master, Tai Quack Do, 'he's totally wigged out,'" he said.

"What?" I asked perplexed.

"He's afraid, Wildwing... he's afraid," Grin said solemnly.

**PLEASE REVIEW**


	7. A Day of Sorrow

DRAKE

I ran through the darkness as two voices called out to me, "Drake! Drake! Where are you!"

"Mom! Dad! I'm coming! Hold on!" I called out into the dark then skidded to a stop as a silhouetted figure came into view ahead of me.

Looking left and right I approached cautiously. The figure had their back to me. "Dad?"

Suddenly the figure spun around and had grabbed me by the throat, squeezing hard. I looked up at the shadowed covered face as I fell to my knees clutching the person's wrists.

Then a new voice met my ears, a voice that chilled me to the bone as a shadow within a shadow appeared behind the figure. "You will be ours," it declared with all the authority of destiny.

"NO!"

I awoke with a start and sat bolt up right in bed, breathing hard, Dive's snoring loudly in the background. Slowly I fell back into my pillow, eyes closed.

'The same nightmare again and again, what's happening to me?' I thought to myself. Sighing, I knew I wouldn't get anymore sleep tonight so I slipped from bed and went to the bathroom for a shower.

Twenty minutes later, dressed and still drying my hair, my mind kept going over the dream but I could get nothing more from it. Glancing over at the clock near my bed, I saw it was still some time before the sun would come up. I slipped from the room, without waking Dive, and entered the hall. The lights went on and off as I walked down the hall with no particular direction in mind.

I found myself at the elevators and decided to go up to the pond. Moment later, I was leaning against the low wall separating the stands from the ice and watching the mist that drifted up from the cold surface. I started at it as the mist swirled up and down in the still air.

As I stared, the mist seemed to form a shape of some kind. I narrowed my eyes and squinted, trying to determine what it was I was seeing. To my amazement, two ghostly faces appeared less than inches from my face. Their hollow eyes stared at me a long moment then, seeming to smile at me, they vanished as suddenly as they had appeared.

I continued to stare stupidly then shook my head and blinked rapidly to clear my eyes before looking around again but there was nothing to see. Perhaps my tired mind was playing tricks on me. Shaking my head, I left the rink for the lockers where I put on a pair of skates, grabbed a hockey stick and a bucket of pucks then returned to the ice.

I placed the bucket of pucks on the wall edge then went over to the small door that led to the ice and opened it. It made a loud metal on metal report as it banged shut after I stepped through. Gliding out to the center of the rink, stick in hand, I halted then took a deep breath to prepare myself before darting for the goal line ahead of me.

For almost ten minutes, I skated back and forth between the lines as fast as I could, the advertisements on the wall becoming a blur. When I was done, I skated back close to where I had left the pucks, laid my stick down a moment, and put one foot after the other up on the wall in a stretch then I grabbed the bucket and turning in one motion, spun and emptied the pucks onto the ice.

Picking my stick up, I raced toward a puck and, after snatching it up, raced toward one of the goals, dribbling it in front of me then firing and scoring at a sharp angle. I quickly skated back for another puck, this one I juggled in the air on my stick a couple times before slap shooting it still in air into the corner of the goal.

One by one, I put the pucks into the goal at various angles and going in different directions of the goal. As time went on, my shots became flashier and flashier putting all my skill in shooting and skating, into them. After I put the last puck in with a hard slap shot at an incredible angle, I stood still to breathe for a moment. The sound of clapping hands made me turn with a start.

MALLORY

Me and Wildwing clapped after watching Drake's amazing work on the ice. He had finally stopped and we just had to show our appreciation for the fantastic show of skill he put on. He was startled by our noise and stared at us for a moment before skating over to us.

"Tha… that was incredible Drake. Why didn't you tell us you could play like that?" Wildwing asked handing him some bottled water.

He drank heavily before answering. "You never asked."

Wildwing looked at me and I shrugged. "Well, why don't you stay out there for a second, let us get some gear on and we'll give you a bit of competition," I suggested.

Drake was silent for a moment then shook his head. "Thank, but no...maybe some other time... I have things to do today," he said moving to the small door and climbing off the ice.

As he began to walk toward the lockers, Wildwing asked, coaxingly, "but why not now since you're already warmed up and it's still early yet. Some of those shots could give me a real challenge."

Drake froze in midstep and slowly turned around, giving Wildwing a strange look before he asked, "do you know what day this is?"

I frowned in confusion and looked over at Wildwing who checked his watch and sighed. "Sorry, yeah, I remember now."

Drake turned fully around to stare at us measuringly. "Then you know it's not a good day for me ... and Mallory?... please don't follow me, I'd rather be alone." That said, he turned back around and walked to the locker room.

Some minutes later, he returned wearing a jacket and sneakers. Without looking back at them, he walked up the stairs of the stands and out of sight.

Glancing over at Wildwing, I asked, "What's so special about today?"

Wildwing turned his head and gave me sad eyes. "It's the anniversary of his parent's death."

The blood drained from my face as I looked up to where Drake had disappeared. "Oh..." I whispered softly.

DRAKE

After leaving the pond, I hopped onto the next bus that stopped at the corner. Choosing a seat at the rear, I rode in silence, staring out the window. As the bus turned into the suburban area of the city, I felt eyes on me and turned to see a small child staring at me as he sat next to his mother.

He and I stared at each other for a couple of seconds then he smiled and waved. I tried and failed to give him even a half smile but just ended up waving back then his mother caught sight of me and told him not to bother me. She tried to apologize but I waved it off and return to staring out the window.

When I reached my stop, a small suburban area outside the city, I stepped out into the early morning sunlight and looked around the familiar area. Memories of my past seemed to flood back to me as I stood there. Seeing a couple of familiar places, I turned and walked down the street.

I arrived at a small store, titled 'Sam's Boutique' in gold letters on a black sign over the door. Flower stands stood neatly organized outside on the sidewalk, providing a splash of color to the surrounding area.

Smiling slightly, I dropped to one knee and cupped a flower in my hand, closing my eyes and sniffing its delicate perfume.

After letting the scent linger in my nose a moment, I released the bloom and slowly climbed to my feet again to walk through the front door. As the door opened, the bell above it chimed and a familiar voice called out from door near the counter.

"Be right there, just give me a sec!"

Smiling I shook my head and went to some lilies on display and a second later I heard footsteps approach. "Sorry about that now wha…" a voice started behind me then stopped.

When I was done looking at the lilies, I turned, hands in my pockets.

The man in front of me was middle aged with streaks of grey in his dark hair. He wore an apron over his plaid shirt with a pair of pruning shears in one pocket. He starred at me wide-eyed, mouth slightly open.

After a second he blinked, eyes narrowing. "Drake?" .

I smiled. "Hi Sam."

Half a second later, Sam emitted a great laugh then swept me into his arms for a tight bear hug. "Drake McCloud, as I live and breathe! How have you been boy!" He asked in a booming voice as he released me.

"I've been good," I said, shyly, rubbing the back of my head.

He started waving a finger at me. "You know just the other day Percy came in here to pick up his usual for his wife and said 'I just had the funniest call of my life. It seems some principal of a high school in the city wants the records of Drake McCloud.' And I'm like 'they can't be talking about our Drake' and he goes 'well do we know any other?' Well anyway, long story short, he tells me everything and by the end, he and I are laughing so hard, I couldn't tell the difference from a live flower from a dead one when I was putting together his order." He laughed at the memory.

"Well at least I know I can still stir up something here even when I'm not here," I said, smirking, infected by his good humor.

Sam took a step back and pointed at me. "Drake, you have got to stay for dinner. Sasha would love to see you again and cook you some of her famous home cooking," he coaxed.

Uncomfortable, I shuffled my feet, looking down. "As much as it pains me, I must decline. I have to be back at my foster parents by tonight. But I promise to stop by some other time," I said, sadly, looking back up at him.

He waved it off. "No matter. She'll just be happy that you're doing good now. What can I do for you," he said, putting his hands on his hips.

Giving a sad smile, I said softly, "I think you know."

His face fell a little. "Ah, is it that time of year again?" He sighed. "Well, tell me what you'd like this time and I'll make the bouquets," he said gently, pulling out his shears.

"All I need is two Scarlet Carson's and two Lilies of the Valley," I replied, smiling wanely.

He nodded. "I'll get you my finest and freshest pair each," he said warmly, then disappeared behind the counter, through the doorway that led to his nursery.

I stood calmly waiting and, only a few minutes later, he returned carrying two fancy boxes holding one of each flower.

"How much do I owe you?" I asked reaching into my pocket.

He held up his hand. "No charge Drake. By the way, they finished the Community Center and named it in his honor." He handed over the boxes.

"Thank you," as I took the boxes. "Thanks for letting me know, he would have liked that," I said simply, nodded and turned to leave.

"Your parents were good people, Drake. Everyone still misses them and still talks about… what happened…" he said as I halfway through the door.

I closed my eyes, a tear rolling down my cheek and continued walking out the door. Outside, I took a cleansing breath and went off down the street.

Soon, I reached the local cemetery and kept going until I came to two graves shining in the sunlight, a flag lightly billowing next to one of them. After staring down at them for a long moment, I dropped to one knee putting the boxes down. Slowly I reached out and traced the names with my finger tip.

Duncan Jun McCloud

Devoted Husband of Moya

Father of Drake Colin McCloud

A Man of Honor

Julia Moya McCloud

Beloved Wife of Duncan

Mother of Drake Colin McCloud

A Diamond in the Rough

When I was done, I wiped a tear from my face. "I miss you guys so much," I whispered softly as I slowly opened one of the boxes and laid one flower each on the graves.

I was silent for a time before speaking. "As you probably know, I've gone through some hard times lately but I think things are starting to settle down. However, I keep having that nightmare and its occurring more frequently. And the blackouts, they're not as common but still happening as well," I said then looked away and back again.

"Also as you probably know, I have a new foster family. At least this one I don't feel the need to escape from and, I have to admit, the rinkside seats are a nice touch," I said with a laugh.

"You'd like Wildwing, Dad, he reminds me of you. And Mallory is a lot like you, Mom, only a little tougher. And I can't help but feel happy when I'm around Dive, he's just that kind of guy. Sometimes, I think Duke needs to lighten up a little and Grin, whose the very embodiment of the term Gentle Giant, unless you get on his bad side, is always good to me. Finally, there's Tanya. I think I understand her more than any of the others." I paused a moment.

"I keep getting this feeling… like there is something I need to do but can't put my finger on it. Well, whatever it is and if I decide to do it, I'll try to make you proud," I said looking down at the graves. "Well until next year. Whatever happens between then and now, please don't think any less of me," I finished, then after kissing the stones, I picked up the remaining box and left the cemetery.

Half an hour later, I stepped off the bus back in the city about an hour or so from the pond. Looking around I started walking down the side walk. I hadn't gone more than a few feet when a voice called out to me.

"Drake!"

I slowly turned, scanning the crowd then smiled as I saw Xena wave to me as she walked over. "Hey man how's it going?" She asked, reaching me and grasping my free hand.

"It's going good and not to be rude but I have somewhere to be right now. Talk to you soon." I started to walk away when she called to me.

"Hey, wait, I haven't seen you in school lately and I got this strange note in one of my classes saying you were going to be my tutor. What's going on?"

I cocked a half smile at her. "It's complicated."

"I guess I'll just have to find out on my own then," she warned.

I snorted and gave her a look. "It probably has to do with the fact I graduated years ago."

She blinked at this. "Wait a minute, I'm in junior high! Are you saying you graduated from high school?" She demanded, eyebrow arched.

"With academic scholarships offered from Princeton, Harvard, Stanford, and Yale...yeah."

Shaking her head and huffing, "so you're...what...some kind of super genius?"

"Well according to my IQ tests, yeah, I am."

She laughed abruptly and as I stared at her, I caught sight of someone else and froze. Xena began to walk off but when she realized I wasn't following, turned back with a puzzled look on her face.

"Drake what is it?"

I continued to stare past her and she turned her head to follow my gaze and frowned. All she saw was a little girl standing across from them wearing a torn dress."

"Emily!" I breathed in shock.

"What?" Xena asked, confused.

I ignored her and shouted louder, "Emily!" The little girl looked at me and I smiled at her but to my surprise, she took off running. "Emily! Wait!" I took off running after her, clutching the box of flowers in my hand.

My feet pounded on the pavement as I ran across the street, car horns blared at me and at Xena who was running behind me. A car stopped suddenly in front of me, the driver shouting, as I easily rolled across the hood and came down on my feet on the other side.

Reaching the other side of the street, I wormed my way through the pedestrian traffic, catching a glimpse of the girl just ahead of me.

She didn't look back as she darted into a alley. I was close behind with Xena not far from my heels. I called out the little girls name again as she climbed over some crates at end of the alley and went over the fence, disappearing over the top. In a flash, I was at the top looking down at Emily reaching the bottom.

Quickly, I dropped down a level then flipped over Emily to land like an acrobat in front of her.  
I raised my hands and said soothingly, "Emily, it's ok...I promise..." I had my arms spread wide, dropping the box, to keep her penned in.

She looked like a cornered animal as she looked from me to Xena who looked down at us from the middle of the crates. Then she turned and tried to make a break for it but I caught her and held her in my arms.

She squirmed in my arms as I tried to sooth her. "It's ok, Emily... its ok... it's Drake... its Drake," I repeated over and over until she slowly began to calm. I dropped to one knee, allowing her feet to touch the ground but keeping a gentle arm around her middle.

I continued to make soothing noises while rubbing her back. Finally, she laid her head against my shoulder and started to sob as she held me tight. Then slowly, she pulled back, so I released her and she stepped further back to look at me.

"Drake?" She whispered hesitantly and when I nodded, she threw herself back in my arms again, sobbing in relief.

"It's ok, it's all right, you're safe," I murmured, as Xena joined us on the ground.

It took several minutes before Emily could stop crying. Holding her close, I asked, "Emily, where's Frank? Is he nearby?"

She turned and looked at me then slowly shook her head. "Then where is he?" I asked.

"They took him."

"The police?"

She shook her head.

"Then who?"

"Bad men," she said, shivering.

Frowning in concern, I gave Xena a glance, she looked at me with a confused eyes. I looked back at Emily and told her, "we've got to get you to safety." I began to stand up with her in my arms when I felt a sudden stinging sensation in my shoulder.

Spinning around quickly, I saw two men coming down the alley toward us, one was holding something. The world began to spin and grow dark on me, shaking my head only made it worse. Alarmed, I let Emily go and shouted, "Run...Xena take Emily...run!" Then the world faded out completely and I felt my body falling but I was unconscious before I hit the ground.


	8. Lost

XENA

When Drake went down, a dart in his shoulder, I grabbed Emily's hand and we clambered back up the crates, pausing a moment to stare down at the men now towering over him. The men spotted us and began shouting which was our cue to vamoose. However, when we reached the bottom on the other side, more of the men were waiting there for us.

"Nowhere to run now girls," one said as they advanced, sure of the capture.

My eyes darted around then I smiled. "Why? You guys never played kick the can?" I asked, sarcastically, thrusting my foot into a nearby can.

I then sent the can flying into the gut of the closest man. Then after rolling across his back I backhanded one then going with it nailed a second with a spin kick. Still going with the momentum I dropped down and swept the legs out of the first then knocked him out with a punch.

"MOVE IT!" I barked to Emily, grabbing her hand again and pulling her brutally along as we ran out of the alley, putting some distance before the two men could recover enough to follow.

Once out in the crowd, we fled down a sidewalk, the two men not too far behind us. We weaved through the crowd as fast as we could, with me looking back every once and a while to see how close they were. Suddenly, something caught my eye, I turned off toward it.

A city bus was arriving at a stop just ahead. We raced up just as the last passenger was climbing aboard and followed him. I quickly flashed my bus pass then hurried to the rear of the bus just as the doors closed behind us. The men had just arrived but the driver wouldn't open the door so one of the men slammed a fist and cracked the glass of the door. Shouting at the man, the driver put the bus in gear and drove off, reaching for his radio to report the attack and damage to his bus.

Still out of breath, I panted and felt tremendous relief that we were safe. Emily was trembling and panting beside me but said nothing, just looked scared and upset. I closed mine, not wanting to deal with her yet.

As I tried to ease my heart rate down and thing what I need to do next, a wave of unease came over me.

'How could I have left him?' I asked myself as I stared at her. 'Because he told you to, and you'd trust him with your life. Besides if you hadn't, you and Emily would have been taken as well. Besides he'll be fine, they don't tranquillize people they want to kill,' she immediately reassured herself. 'Yeah, so why do I still feel so bad about it?'

Something tugged on my sleeve. I blinked my eyes open and stared down to see it was Emily.

"Where are we going and what will happen to Drake?" she asked, anxiously.

I gave her a small smile and taking her hand, said, "we're going to get help to save Drake. Meanwhile, he'll be okay, he knows how to take care of himself, don't worry." I wished I believed what I was telling her.

DUKE

I had finished my daily run and had come to a stop at the doors, waiting for Dive to catch up to me. I grinned as I wiped the sweat from my brow watching as my friend finally reached my side, panting hard.

"So what was that you were saying the other day? Something about old Duck Bones creaking?" I said as he joined me.

"Aw go marinate yourself in teriyaki and stuff it," he said glaring at me. I chuckled and glanced up as the bus came to a stop near us.

"We'd better get inside before…" I started to say when only two people got off.

I blinked when I recognized Xena, who ran up to me towing a small girl by the hand behind her. "Hi, Xena! If you're looking for Drake he's…"

"THEY TOOK HIM!" she yelled, interrupting me.

I gaped at her in surprise then blurted, "what are you...?"

She cut me off and rushed to say, "some people shot him with a tranquillizer dart then took him, we barely got outta there.'

I gave Dive a grim look before turning back to her and demanding, "tell us everything that happened and who this is?"

As I activated my wrist communicator, she said, "oh, this is Emily." I nodded and began to speak into the device. "Wildwing! We have a situation!"

DRAKE

Slowly I opened my eyes but I couldn't see anything...no shadows, no blurry forms, not even a hint of light... just complete and utter darkness. I blinked again and again but still nothing. My blood suddenly turned to ice, I could always see very well in the dark but not now...it was pitch dark.

Had they blinded me, whoever they are? I asked myself, fear crawling up my spine. The last thing I remembered was being shot with a tranq dart and falling to the ground out cold. Was I even awake or was I still under the influence of the drug? Was this just a dream? No, no dream, I assured myself. My next thought was for Emily and Xena...did they escape or were they captured as well? I desperately needed answers.

Trying to sit up, I found I couldn't move at all. It felt like I was suspended in midair somehow, yet, I could feel… water…? More frantic, I tried moving any part of my body but none of it obeyed my commands. All I could do was feel something pressing on me on all sides.

It felt like water and it seemed I was completely submerged in it but what was holding me suspended within it...why didn't I sink...and most importantly, how the heck could I still be breathing so easily ...my lungs should be filled with liquid but it wasn't.

The next thing I noticed was I couldn't hear anything...just dead air...panic was definitely setting in. Where the hell was I? What was this place? Who are these people? What did they want with me?'

The questions crowded my head as I lay blind, deaf, and unable to move in this utter weightlessness.

WILDWING

In less than five minutes after Duke had told us Drake had been kidnapped, we were tearing out of the hangar in the Migrator in full armor. We quickly picked up Duke and Dive along with Xena and this little girl named Emily and were now hightailing it to the spot she had given us on where Drake had been knocked out.

"Mallory! Take the wheel!" I barked. She and I switched places then I stepped away to go speak with Xena. Halting before her, I asked, "okay, tell me about everything that had happened."

Over the next few minutes, we all listened as she related the incident in as much detail as she could remember. When she was through, I eyed her intently, "...that's it?"

She nodded slowly, lowering her gaze. "I should have stayed I could have…" she began to murmured angrily when Mallory cut her off.

"Could have what Xena? Stayed and fought? Then we'd be out looking for you too."

"She's right Xena, if you had stayed, they would have taken you and Emily so stop with the guilt trip...you did the right thing and kept Emily safe as Drake asked you to," Duke chimed in from his station.

"He is correct child. As my old master Tae Quack Do would say 'a charging center is strong, but a center charging with his wings is stronger still'," Grin said ponderously, placing his massive hand on her shoulder.

Staring up at him, Xena frowned in puzzlement then looked over at Dive. "Translation?"

"Better to attack in numbers then alone, I think," Dive responded, smiling a little. She sighed and nodded.

Smiling gently, I took her hand in both of mine. "Xena, I promise you, we'll find him and get him back." She smiled back wanly and gripped my hand in return.

I glanced away from her to stare at the small girl, Emily, thoughtfully. 'And just who are you?' I wondered, moving away again and taking the controls next to Mallory.

"Wildwing how old would you say Emily is?" Mallory asked in an undertone.

I glanced at her. "Five maybe six…." I started then it hit me. "Oh my god!" I muttered looking back at her.

"She's the girl that…" Mallory nodded and started to reply when she was interrupted by the communicator going off.

"Wildwing, here," I answered.

"Buddies! Where are you guys? I've got reporters here waiting to interview you! And for that matter, where is Drake?" Phil spoke out of the comlink. "They want an angle on him! Going from the streets to the Pond! Nice, eh?"

"Phil, cancel the interview and, for the record, we told you not to do it in the first place," I growled angrily at him.

"Cancel the INTERVIEW! Are you nuts! This is a publicity gold mine!" Phil shouted back, stunned and very angry.

"Phil! Drake is not a publicity thing to exploit...besides, he's missing…" I began to say when Phil shocked voice screamed.

"'MISSING'! WHAT DO YOU MEAN MISSING!"

"He's been kidnapped."

"KIDNAPPED! We gotta find him...we have to notify the newspapers...TV...the cops... wait...this is perfect... I can see it all now... 'Foster Son of the Ducks...Ducknapped'…" Phil began, getting excited about the opportunity this presented.

My temper snapped. "PHIL! You can stop right there! You use this for publicity and not only are you fired but you'll never work again!" I shouted and cut him off.

Breathing hard I tried to regain control of my temper then glanced over at Mallory. "Nice to know he's got his priorities straight," I huffed.

"I would have done more than just threatened," she muttered back.

PHIL

I stared at my phone in utter shock as Wildwing's words echoed in my head. Slowly, I slipped it into my inside jacket pocket then sat down in the stands and stared out over the ice. After a moment I dropped my face into my hand.

'There I go again letting my mouth run before really thinking,' I thought then looked up at the scoreboard.

'Drake wherever you are, be safe and hold tight. If anyone can find you, the Ducks can' I thought then looked up at the reporters. 'I have a feeling this is going to be easier for me than for them.' I got up and headed for them.

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	9. Needle in a Haystack

TANYA

When we reached the site where Drake had been taken, we quickly disembarked from the Migrator and darted into the alley.

"It was on the other side of those crates!" Xena barked pointing.

Nodding I looked over at Wildwing as he touched both sides of his mask. "Nothing obvious, Tanya!" he said, giving me a pointed look. I nodded.

'Break out the gear! We're going to need everything we've got to search for the smallest trace on the ones who took him," Wildwing ordered.

Mallory and I hurried back to the Migrator. Inside we went to the lockers and pulled out all the equipment we'd need.

"No Mallory! We need the Matter Dynastic and the Air Filterer, not the Aquavaporer or Munitions Renderizor,' I said when I saw her pick up the wrong gear.

"What's the dif?" she demanded.

"How about no shots were fired and it hasn't rained in about a week," I said, tossing her some gear. She shrugged and we both headed back to the team.

NOSEDIVE

We searched the area for over an hour while Tanya used her gizmos to find anything we couldn't see with our eyes or noses.

We found nothing in the manual search and I felt we were wasting valuable time hanging around here. Even Tanya came up with only air fragments and a tranq dart she found. She needed to take the samples to some whatzit to see if there were any clues to the kid's whereabouts.

Wildwing split us up into search teams to check the area further out from the alley... talk to people to see if anyone had seen our perps hanging about before the snatch.

Xena ended up coming with me on one of the Duckcycles. Emily was left behind in the Migrator for her safety.

As we climbed aboard my cycle, Xena asked from behind me, "Nosedive, do you think we'll find him?"

"Totally dudet, me and my posse will turn this haystack upside down looking for him. And when we do, the only person you'll have to worry about is the person who took him," I said then sent the cycle roaring off down the road and taking the next turn that came up

"You sound like you're trying to convince yourself more than me," she said as we halted at a stop sign.

I turned to look at her. "Hey sister, if there's one thing I know about my posse especially my bro, it's, when it comes to things they care about, nothing will stop them! Nothing!" I snapped then turned facing forward again.

"Nosedive you got anything yet?" Wildwing demanded over the com.

"That's a big zippidy do da bro."

"Keep looking, we're not stopping until we find him."

"Don't worry bro this feathered hound is on the scent!"

"Just find him!" Wildwing barked again, then the com went dead.

'Hold on there little bro, we'll find you! And when we do, were gonna give those creeps some major payback,' I thought.

DUKE

Me and Mallory flew in the Aerowing using the sensors to search the city for any sign of the elements Tanya had found with her gizmos. Unfortunately, so far the sensors were picking up absolutely nothing.

"Anything yet?" Mallory asked from the pilot seat.

I looked over at her from the sensor station and shook my head. "Argh! This is getting us nowhere! Those elements could be found just as readily in a restaurant or a hot dog stand than where Drake's being held," she snarled at me in frustration as she turned the Aerowing to a different heading.

"We can't give up!" I snapped back.

"What do you care? You've wanted to dump him at the first opportunity!"

My ears ringing in the truth but I whipped around to face her. "Mallory! I care about that boy as much as you and Wildwing do! We're going to find him and bring him home. That is, after I give those creations a piece of my mind and my Ducksaber," I snapped at her meaning every word.

"Not before I beat them black and blue," she assured me in a low growl.

WILDWING

Hours and many interviews later, I was on the second Duckcycle while Grin and Tanya were still tearing down the streets in the Migrator still searching as the sun slowly sank from view.

Activating my com, I barked, "Anything yet, Tanya?"

"Nothing since the last time you asked, five minutes ago," she snapped testily. "Look, Wildwing, we were lucky to find those fumes and the dart but its just not enough to locate these creeps."

I turned down a side street, anger and fear racing through me as I answered her more sharply than I intended. "Luck or not, we are not giving up while there is still some daylight so keep looking," I snapped, switching frequencies. "Mallory!"

"Wildwing we're running on fumes here. We need to return to the pond and regroup," Mallory urged, through the speakers.

"We still have daylight. Keep looking! I don't care if you crash...keep searching," I snarled, unreasonably.

Dive responded, "Wildwing we've done all we can out here and came up with zilch. We need fresh leads to go on!"

"They're right, Wildwing! We've done all we can for today. We need rest, fuel, and new leads if we're to find him at all," Duke chimed in urgently.

"Listen to us! I could use DRAKE 1 to narrow the search so we won't be scouring the entire city to no good purpose," Tanya begged, trying to get me to heed her.

"NO! We keep looking!" I shouted, mad with worry and no longer caring what they all thought.

"WILDWING!" A powerful bellow rang in my ear.

Stunned, I couldn't remember a time when Grin had ever yelled before so I shut up and listened as he said, gently, "my friend, even the smallest pebble can divert the mightiest river."

"Say what!" Dive exclaimed, confused.

"We need more information to help us search," Grin explained more simply.

I closed my eyes and took a deep cleansing breath before speaking again. "Alright, everyone back to the Pond. Dive...take Xena home. We start fresh in the morning!" I ordered turning my Duckcycle around, heading reluctantly for the Pond.

NOSEDIVE

Xena told me her address and I drove her to the dreaiest neighborhood I'd ever seen. The apartment I pulled up to matched the area. I wasn't happy at seeing the gang symbols spray painted on many of the buildings including hers.

I kept my eye roving around, not liking the feel nor the many eyes staring at us. I turned my head and asked, "you really live here?"

She climbed off and shrugged her shoulders. "It's not much …" she started to say but was interrupted by a shout from an upper window.

I looked up and saw a nasty looking individual glaring down and shaking an angry finger down at her.

"GIRL WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN? YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO START COOKING ME DINNER!"

"Leave her alone," another, weaker voice, begged from somewhere behind the creep.

"WHAT WAS THAT!" the individual disappeared from view and began yelling at the other person.

Frowning I stared at Xena with some concern but her look dared me to say anything. I knew that look, I'd seen it before on the abused, the poor, the suffering. It hurt to see that look in Xena's face but I said nothing about it and left her what pride she had.

"Don't let them get you down dudedet. I'll pick you up in the morning and we'll begin the search again." She nodded and turned away. I waited until she entered the building before driving away back to the Pond.

GRIN

When we got back to the Pond, Wildwing stormed out of the hangar barking, "Tanya get to DRAKE 1 and get those thing analyzed! I want to know everything there is to know about them!"

Then he stalked from the hangar, we followed much more slowly.

"Doesn't he realize we're just as worried as he is about the kid?" Duke asked, angrily.

"His inner peace and tranquility is severely disturbed," I muttered following the others.

"His isn't the only one but what do we do now?" Mallory asked.

"We must turn to our inner stillness for guidance and wisdom," I said calmly.

"Oh come on, Grin! Can't you ever give us a straight answer!" she snarled.

I decided answering would only make things worse. A roar behind us, indicated Dive had returned as well. I didn't look around as I made for my room and disappeared behind its door.

Peace descended on me immediately and I sighed. I flicked my music on and set some incense burning before assuming my lotus position on the carpet I used for meditation. Closing my eyes and breathing deep of the soothing scent filling the air, I worked to regain my inner peace and tranquility. But I had a feeling I wasn't going to find that as long as Drake was in enemy hands.

NOSEDIVE

When I arrived in the hangar, everyone was nearly gone. It appeared no one felt like talking. I could dig that. We were all antsy and angry about not finding the kid.

Since no one seemed to have been interested in refueling the Migrator and Aerowing, I decided to volunteer. It would keep me occupied. I'll be sure to check the Duckcycles as well.

It was hard to see old Wildwing flip out like that. Man, he's really missing the kid but so are the rest of us. I also don't like to think about the bad situation Xena seems to be in but that will have to wait until we get Drake back. I sigh and shove all that crud to the back of my mind and focus on getting us ready for the morning.

I parked the Duckcycle and made for the Migrator.

MALLORY

My fists and feet were blurs as I pounded on the bag, but in my mind I was pounding the people who took Drake. Unable to get to them, I took out all my anger, my frustration, and my thirst for their blood out on the bag until I couldn't stand any longer and simply sagged against it, breathing hard.

"And I thought I was a little out of line and holding back anger."

I turned to look at Wildwing who was staring at me from the door leaning against the frame for a few seconds then stood straight and walked toward me. "I know he's grown on you as much as he has on me," he said putting a hand on my shoulder.

"Because he's become a part of our family Wildwing," I said, heavily.

"It's more than that for you isn't it?"

I lowered my gaze and walked over to a bench, picking up my towel.

"Mallory, I'm going to make you a promise here and now. We're going to get him back," he said, firmly.

"Let's hope for all our sakes that you can keep that promise," I muttered.

"I haven't failed you guys yet," he said then turned to leave.

"But you're wrong about one thing we're all like Drake. Like us he lost everything important in his world. And when that wasn't enough he was beaten down even further like us when were enslaved. So he's like all of us not just me," I said then walked stalked past him out of the gym.

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	10. An Ant to a Giant

XENA

I woke when my alarm clock sounded off and turned to press the snooze button. I sent my gaze around the room, seeing posters on my wall of the Duck's team, a few rock bands, action movies, a Chuck Norris, a Cynthia Rothrock, and one with rearing black horse with a stormy background. The rest of my room was neat and orderly with fantasy figurines dotting the surfaces here and there.

With a flurry I was out of bed and quickly dressed. "Bring me luck and help me find my friend," I murmured, rubbing the head of a Golden Dragon figurine. "I'm going out! Be back later!" I yelled as I darted out of my room glancing into the living room.

"And where do you think you're going?" My father snarled, his voice ugly, as he sat in his lounger, a beer in his big hand as usual.

"Let her go out," my mother said meekly.

"Shut your fat pie hole and get me another beer!" my father snapped nastily at her.

Saying nothing and not looking in her husband's direction, my mother climbed to her feet. She was a pretty woman who looked a lot like me, though now she looked downtrodden, older than she should with deep wrinkles and graying hair. But despite the slumped, defeated shoulders, I found some hidden strength and spirit still left in her despite all my father's efforts to stamp it out.

My father on the other hand was a disenchanted and abusive drunk. He'd been the typical high school jock who thought the world owed him everything but who learned quickly that you were only as good as you made yourself but he was far too lazy and found himself not such a big fish when he joined boxing in college and failed to meet the standards of both academics and the boxing world. Thrown out after his second semester, he settled on a menial job that paid nearly nothing and decided the whole world was against him.

His wife, who he'd married just before he was kicked out college, suffered under his bad temper and disillusionment. Despite his position in life, he still felt he was the bread winner in this family so refused to allow his wife to work to bring more income in and never let her out of the house least she decide to leave him. She haunted the house, a ghost of her former self. But despite her treatment by her husband, she lavished her love and attention on me, her only child, who adored her.

As she came out of the living room heading for the kitchen, she paused to smile at me then nodded toward the door. I smiled back and mouthed 'may stay with a freind I love you' then turned and went out the door quickly.

Moments later, I was out the door of the apartment building and looking around, immediately spotting one of the Duckcycles a short distance away, Mallory at the wheel.  
"Took you long enough. We've got to get started," she said, throwing me a helmet which I caught and put on.

"Anything new?" I asked as I climbed on behind her.

"Tanya may have narrowed the search position, the dart helped with that."

"Then what are we waiting for!" I shouted and she hit the gas.

WILDWING

We pulled up to the gate of the complex where the clues had led us and climbed out to confront the security guard we could see watching us.

"If the security was any tighter you might as well call this place a base." I muttered looking around at the high walls, strong gate and security cameras. The sign over the gate stated, 'Paradine Research Labs'.

The moment we came in mass toward the gate itself, a guard in black military style fatigues stepped out from the small guard shack, an automatic rifle slung over his shoulder and held casually.

"Please state your business," he said, politely.

"We need to see someone in authority," I demanded. "And we aren't leaving until we do," I added when I saw refusal in his eyes.

He stared at us for a long moment then returned to his guard shack and picked up a phone. He spoke for several minutes then came back out to us.

"Someone is coming to speak with you."

I nodded and we all waited. Soon a little gold cart, sort of like a golf cart, came rolling up on the other side of the gate. In it were three men. Two were dressed like the guard, wore sunglasses and were more muscular than the gate guard, the third had greased back hair and wore a fine suit.

The three stepped out of the cart and approached the gate and stared at the Ducks. "May I help you?" the man in the fine suit asked.

"You have our foster kid in there somewhere and we want them back?" I said coldly.

He frowned. "Why would we want your foster kid and what makes you think they are here?" he asked haughtily.

I held up the dart. "We found this at the scene of the kidnapping," I said.

He chuckled and shook his head. "That dart could have come from anywhere."

"No it couldn't have. The serial number clearly says they were shipped to your facility, no where else," Tanya said, with certainty.

The man with the suit stared at us, his face going cold and expressionless, "it may have been sent here but that does not mean it was used by one of our people and still does not prove we have this boy you're looking for."

He made a blatant mistake and I smiled and chuckled. Everyone of the team were wearing the same smug look.

The suit blinked in surprise and asked, "What may I ask is so funny?"

"We never said it was a he," I said, coldly.

The suits face hardened. "I want all you to clear out of here in five minutes or else I will call the police," he said flatly. He snapped his fingers.

Instantly, the gate guard plus the other two guys with the suit held up weapons and pointed them at us.

All but Xena were suddenly in battle armor which startled the guards but no one made a move to attack just yet.

"We'll be back with a warrant and our own army," I warned the man then signaled for everyone to return to the Migrator.

Once aboard, Mallory said, "well at least we know where he is."

I nodded. "Get ahold of Kleghorn, tell him were on our way to see him and that I need a big favor from him. I just hope they don't move Drake or harm him before we get back."

MALLORY

We had burst into Kelghorn's office only a short time later but what the man had to say wasn't what I wanted to hear.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN WE HAVE TO WAIT UNTIL TOMORROW?"I shouted at him, slamming my palms down on his desk.

"Need I remind you that you guys were the ones who decided to go lone wolf on this? If you had told us the moment you knew Drake had been taken we could have had a warrant before you even found the place. Paradine has a lot of pull in this town with the research they do. Hardly any judge is going to sign a warrant for it to be searched without due process and iron clad evidence!" Kelghorn barked leaping to his feet.

"Are you kidding? They practically admitted to us they have him!" Xena barked.

"Do you have proof?" Kleghorn demanded.

Tanya tapped a button on her Omnitool and a recording of the conversation played back. "That's not good enough. He could easily say that tape was doctored, plus Drake being your foster son is not a state secret," Kleghorn spat.

Wrenching it from Wildwing's pocket I slammed the dart down on his desk. "What about that? That was the dart Drake was shot with. You'll find his blood on the tip and tranquilizer in it," I demanded.

Kleghorn looked at it then at us. "And you have absolute proof that this could only have come from Paradine?" he asked, hesitantly.

"Vacuumed sealed," Tanya said.

Kleghorn sat back down. "We still have to wait till tomorrow. I can only think of one judge who might sign off on it and he doesn't get back till tomorrow morning. So either way we have to wait," he sighed.

"So we have to pray, Drake holds out that long," I said bitterly.

DRAKE

Time was meaningless as I lay in whatever I was being kept in. I had no idea how long I had been there. A day, a week, a month, a year?

I felt no hunger or thirst. I felt no pain. Just utter emptiness.

In that time, my mind played every memory, every thought, every fantasy of my life. The funny thing was, it played it over and over again until I was beginning to doubt what I was seeing was actually real. Doubts began to float through my mind: were my parents alive or dead, was I duck or human, was I a street urchin or had a home. It was like losing my mind a bit at a time.

Through it all, I thought I sang, cried, screamed, laughed, shouted in anger, all the emotions of the rainbow and at other times slept with no thought at all. All of it ran together except for one thing.

'Some things are and always will be certain,' a voice said.

My heart skipped a few beats. 'I'm sorry if I startled you, and I don't normally do this but your need is great,' the voice continued.

The voice seemed to come from no where and everywhere. I couldn't tell if it was in my brain or hearing it with my ears but the feeling I got hearing it was of something huge ... powerful ... alien ... like it was the giant and I was but an ant in its presence.

'That's it! I've finally lost my mind completely!' I thought.

'I assure you that you are not losing your mind,' it said.

'Can this thing hear my thoughts?' I asked myself.

'What do you think?' it said and I would not be surprised if my eyes had popped out my head.

'There is no need for alarm, I'm not with them,' it said as my fear ebbed in.

'Then who are you?'

There was silence for a couple of minutes then… 'You will know in time but for right now you must do as I say if you want to escape from this.'

I thought about it. 'Uh...how do I know I can trust you?'

Silence again. 'If you can't trust me then you can't trust anyone,' it said plainly.

That seemed to make sense to me so, 'tell me what to do.'

'Relax, and I mean completely...you have to slow your heart rate down. I'll do my best to help you but this has to come mostly from you...I can only do so much.'

Slowly, I took a deep breath and closed my eyes. Or at least I thought I did.

The seconds ticked by as I focused on just breathing in and out...nothing else. Gradually, though I didn't notice it at first, the pressure and tension in my head began to ease and various parts of my body seemed to relax.

My breathing slowed, each inhale and exhale spread further and further apart until it seemed I no longer breathed at all. It seemed my body was slowly, quietly shutting down. Then at long last the first thing I could actually hear was my heartbeat. It too was slowing down, the beats spacing out as my breathing had.

I lay submerged in that liquid not moving an inch. All I did was listen to the sound of my heart beating and willed it to go slower. I don't know how long I kept at it...a minute...half an hour, it was meaningless then a new sensation came over me, like something was being sucked up.

Slowly, I felt the water dropping around me until at last my side touched something but I remained still even though my body was afire with pain from my neglected sences. I heard something open above me and blessed light poured in, hands grabbed me and lifted me upward.

"You were supposed to be monitoring his vitals!" a voice barked, sounding horribly loud to me after that long silence I'd endured but I kept my body still and didn't flinch.

"I was! They just dropped!" another said, anxiously, as I was laid on something hard and cold.

I struggled to keep my muscles loose as I waited for the right moment. "Look...just inject the adrenaline in him...we've got to get his heart rate up!" the first snapped, urgently.

I felt something wrap around my upper arm. Instantly, I grabbed the man by the wrist, my eyes snapping open and seeing two men in white lab coats. Before he could react, I twisted and rammed my fist in one's face then just as fast, kicked the other in the face.

In a flash I rolled off the gurney I was on and turning kicked the first man again hard in the chest. With my foot still raised I kicked him hard in the face and I felt his nose break and he fell back out cold. Hearing movement I turned and saw the second man go for a phone.

I shoved the gurney aside brought my leg up high and brought it down on his forearm feeling his bones break. My foot back on the ground, I twisted around and brought my other foot across his face, sending him back. Giving him a brief look, I saw he was cradling his arm which had a couple of odd angles to it now, I looked away and stared down at myself and saw I was wearing only a tight pair of shorts.

Keeping an eye on him, I moved away from the table to the roll around stand that held the syringe they had intended to use on me. Sitting there were bottles of medication. I filled the syringe halfway with the contents of one of them before leaning down and jamming the needle into the first man's ass, emptying it into the soft tissue, insuring he'd not be getting up anytime soon.

"You bastard! You broke my arm!" the second guy hissed, glaring at me from the floor as I swiped the other man's keys and stuck them in the top of my shorts.

My eyes afire with anger, I stalked over to him, the syringe still in my hand. I paused to grab two medication vials then continued on to the angry, hurt man. "There are two hundred and six bones in the human body, THAT'S TWO! And I'll do worse if you don't do as I say! Now don't move!" I growled grabbing him.

I twisted him around, locking up his good arm as I shoved him against the tank I had been in. To keep him in place, I jammed my knee into his spine.

"What are you going to do?" the man asked weakly as I dropped one vial and filled the syringe completly with the other then dropped it.

I lowered my leg, grabbed his good arm and twisted it back toward me before jamming the filled needle into his neck. "Do I have your full and complete cooperation?" I demanded.

"Yes," he said, trembling.

"Good, NOW MOVE IT!" I barked.

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	11. A Fight for Freedom

WILDWING

None of us had left the station that night and Xena refused to leave. I had woken up on one of the benches to find Mallory already awake and staring out the window at the rising sun. I stepped around Grin who was asleep in his lotus position (Xena using his theigh as a pillow as she lay on the floor) to stand behind her.

"You ok?" I asked.

I waited a few seconds for an answer, she never responded. I tried again. "What happened to you?" Only then did she turn slowly and stare up at me. "Duke told me what you'd said to him outside the mall."

She let out a puff of air. "That's the last time I say something like that to Duke," she growled and we both turned as Kleghorn barged out of his office.

"We got the warrant!" he barked.

My heart lept as I turned around and shouted, "everyone up! We're going to get Drake!" Everyone was on there feet in a flash and running out to the Migrator.

DRAKE

I made my prisoner lead me out of the lab I'd been kept in and through rather large section containing many labs which were fortunately mostly empty at this hour. We walked the silent halls until we reached the first security checkpoint.

Keeping a tight hold of my prisoner, I glared over his shoulder at the people in the office through the plexiglas door with bars.

"OPEN THE DOOR OR HE'S DEAD BEFORE HE HITS THE FLOOR!" I shouted.

"IT'S NOT GOING TO HAPPEN KID!" one beefy security guard said through the mike.

"YOU GUYS KIDNAPPED ME ON THE ANNIVERSARY OF THE WORST DAY OF MY LIFE. SO DON'T YOU FRIGGIN SCREW WITH ME!" I snarled back at him, tightening my hold on the frightened scientist.

"Open the door! For God's sake! Open the damn door!" the injured man nearly sobbed in pain and fear.

The two guards gave each other a significant stare then the first one that had spoken to him nodded and reached for something near the window I was staring through. A buzzing sound announced the door had been opened.

Wincing in pain the scientist opened the door with his bad arm. As we walked through the open door, a couple more guards in black fatigues came out of the back office carrying Tonfa Batons.

"GET BACK! GET BACK!" I warned pushing the doc forward. The men fell back but watched me tensely.

"Just take it easy kid," one murmured softly.

"THEN GET BACK! OR I'LL PUMP HIM FULL OF THIS!" I shouted. "DROP THEM!" I demanded. Reluctantly, they did, the batons hitting the floor with a clatter.

"BACK IN THE OFFICE...ALL OF YOU!" I ordered. They marched back into the office then turned to eye me watchfully. "FACE DOWN ON THE FLOOR! NOT YOU!" I barked as most did as I demanded except the smallest man I'd warn to stay standing.

"GET OVER HERE! THE REST OF YOU CROSS YOUR LEGS! HANDS BEHIND YOUR HEADS!" I continued my orders as the small man waited. When everyone was safely controlled on the floor, I told the small man to, "GET OVER HERE!" He scurried to my side.

"UNLOCK THE OTHER DOOR!" I told him, jabbing my head at another locked door as I kept my eyes on the men on the ground.

He did as told. I turned my prisoner around and backing up pulled him toward the newly unlocked door and paused. "PICK UP THAT BATON!" I nodding to a nearby baton and the smaller guard went and picked it up and stared at me, waiting.

I opened the door and gave it a quick glance. "GET IN THERE! SMASH THE RADIO!" I ordered him and watched as he stepped carefully pass me to quickly destroy the radio equipment...sparks began to fly.

"GOOD! NOW ASSUME THE POSITION!" The man moved to lay next to his friends and did as commanded. At a sound behind me I swiftly kicked another guard coming up behind me hard in the chest and he fell back on to the hard floor to lay still, groaning and breathing hard.

My prisoner felt I was distracted enough for him to make a break but I showed him I wasn't that easily distracted and pushed the plunger in, sending all of the needles contents into him. He started to scream in pain. I shoved him back into the room as I leaned down and swept up one of the batons, stepped through the door, and closed it to slow their rush for me.

'Hope the guy likes water,' I said to myself as I heard my former prisoner screamed for assistance from the guards. Meanwhile, I tore down the hall gripping one baton in my hand by the handdle the blade running slong my arm.

At a corner, I skidded to a halt and peered around it and saw two guards running toward me from the other end. I ran down to meet them halfway.

The first one I met took a swing at my head. Ducking under it, I cut to the side, grabbed his shoulder and drove my knee into his gut. He doubled up then reared back as I brought my elbow up driving the baton blade up under his chin blood coming out of his mouth as I drove my elbow and the tip of the baton blade downward between his neck and shoulder feeling his collarbone shatter.

I turned facing the last man, throwing my baton, nailing him square in the face. He fell back holding his nose then charged me, swinging wildly with his baton. Sidestepping him, I grabbed his wrist, twisted his arm then elbowed him between his shoulder blades. As he fell to one knee, I twisted him around and head butted him.

As he fell, nose spewing blood, I darted away. Rounding another corner, I whipped the keys from my hip as another pair of doors came into sight, the sound of booted feet pounding behind me.

I skidded to a stop and fumbled with the keys. I found the right one just as the guards rounded the far corner. In a flash, I was through and just as I locked it behind me they slammed into it. I darted for the next set of bar doors and found the key quicker this time, threw it open just as the door behind me began to open.

I was through my door and slamming it closed and locked it, reaching through the bars to break the key off in it before they slammed into it arms reaching through the bars for me. 'How are you going to open it with a broken key in it,' I thought in amusement as I continued around the next corner, hearing their cries of frustration behind me.

This hallway had an elevator, much to my relief. I hurried over and pressed the button, keeping my ears open for anymore guards. The lighted numbers began to rise toward my floor when they froze suddenly. I cursed, "damn, why can't anything be easy." I made a beeline for the stairs at the end of the hall.

WILDWING

We pulled up to the gates in the Migrator with Kelgorn's Nissan, a couple of cop sedans, and a SWAT van arriving just after us. We waited for Kelghorn then walked as a group toward the guard house next to the gate.

"We have a warrant to search these premises! Open the gates and let us through," Kelghorn announced to the guards.

One of them eyed Kelghorn uneasily. "I'm sorry sir, but you're going to have to wait a moment while I..." he began to say.

I raised my com to my mouth and muttered, "assault mode," into it.

Behind us, I heard the Migrator shift into Assault Mode, the guards eyes went wide with shock and surprise.

"Now!" I growled as our battle armor appeared on our bodies.

DRAKE

I practically flew down those stairs, freezing on the last landing upon seeing them waiting for me below. As they charged up, I leapt in the air, kicking one in the face and sending him smashing into the others making them all fall backwards down the stairs. Wasting no time, I scrambled down the stairs and over the groaning heap of men, plowing through the door they'd come in and skidding to a sudden halt when more men were there waiting for me.

One of them, a man with greased back hair raised a rifle up and said, "where do you think you're going?" then fired at me.

I twisted with the impact of the dart as it pierced into my shoulder. 'Help me!' I barked in my mind.

I suddenly felt a new strength flow into me and I climbed to my feet and wrenched out the dart dropping it to the floor looking at them as they stared at me in shock and fear. Slowly I took a step forward then twisted as the man fired another dart into me. After wrenching it out I took another step and was shot again but kept going and was shot with a forth dart and I fell to one knee as my world started to go black.

GRIN

We burst through the door and there in the lobby was Drake, dressed only in a tight pair of shorts, charging a line of men with weapons raised and pointed at him. One was the man we'd met yesterday with a rifle raised and pointed at Drake, a smile of triumph on it.

Roaring in fury as I saw Drake begin to fall, I charged them while hearing Wildwing bark at Xena to stay back.

As I plowed into them. "You have seriously messed with my inner peace and tranquility!" I shouted, throwing some of them through the lobby window.

MALLORY

While the others charged the men, I went for grease head, tackling him full in the chest. Now on top of him, I plowed my fist into his face again and again. I paused, pulled him up by his tie and stared at him a second as he opened his now swollen eyes then hitting him again.

I slowly climbed to my feet and spinning jumped up and kicked one of the guards coming at me from behind.

DUKE

With my Ducksaber, I cut some of the men's weapons in half then spinning, kicked them in the faces. With them dropping, I charged the next group, saber raised high and kicked one coming at him from behind.

Dive came in low to the ground then twisted around me, firing his puck launchers close to my side.

"You think we've had enough payback?" I asked.

"Not even close," he muttered.

WILDWING

While every one fought, I charged down the middle, knocking a few aside in my drive to reach Drake who faltered and started to fall.

I caught him in my arms before he hit the ground. "Wildwing," he murmured as he passed out under the drugs.

"YOU HAVE NO RIGHT BEING HERE!"

I turned to look at grease head who was now all messed up as he held his nose, blood pouring from it.

"Actually they have every right," Kelghorn said, coming forward.

"And just who are you?" the man demanded.

Kelghorn pulled back his trench coat. "Lieutenant Kelghorn, Anaheim PD, and you, buddy, are under arrest."

"On what grounds," he demanded as Kleghorn twisted him around and snapped cuffs on.

"We'll start with kidnapping and go from there and, please, give me trouble because I'd love to have those boys take you and your staff in," he said jabbing his thumb at the SWAT team.

I couldn't help but smile as Kleghorn dragged him out and the other cops moved in to round up the others. As the rest of the team gathered around me, I picked Drake up in both my arms and we walked out of the lobby for the Migrator.

"How is he?" Xena barked running up to us Emily in tow.

"He got shot with another tranquilizer. He'll be out for a few hours, other than that he looks fine," I said.

She sighed and I saw Kleghorn come over. "Wildwing we gotta get him to a hospital…" he started when I interrupted.

"He's not going to the hospital," I said, firmly.

Kelghorn frowned. "He may need medical…"

"No, we have medical capabilities and will take care of him ourselves. He's been through hell in the past couple of days and he is not going to wake up in a strange place again. Right now, all he needs is rest and us. Thank you for your help."

Kleghorn sighed and nodded his head, bowing to our wishes then walking off to finish the clean up, leaving us alone.

"You need to go home as well, Xena," I told her gently.

"But…" she began to object.

"We'll let you know if there's any changes, but your parents must be worried sick," I said then carried Drake into the Migrator the others following close behind.

TANYA

Once we had Drake back at the Pond, we immediately took him to the medical room and laid him down on one of the beds. Immediately, I turned on the medical sensors and a beam of light started at his feet and slowly moved up to his head. Once the results came in, I quickly looked them over.

"How is he?" Wildwing asked, impatiently.

Letting out a puff of air I turned to them. "I'm not going to lie to you. Right now, he's very weak. Even without being shot full of tranquilizers, he'd probably would have gone down again. Whatever they'd done to him has left his muscles in a state of weakness I've never seen. It's like for the past couple of days his muscles have received no activity and have been laced with something that was meant to shut them down. Then something fired them up all at once and they took a pounding," I said.

"What does that mean?" Duke asked.

I sighed, my face falling into my hand as I looked up at him. "It's like an engine that ran out of oil but it's forced to keep running anyway. Eventually the gears and all the parts seizes up and the whole engine dies that is what he was close to," I said looking down at him.

"They probably saved his life, because I doubt his heart could have taken much more. But something gave him the strength to go as far as he did, and he almost won," I said in amazement.

_At the Police Station_

I walked into the police station, my eyes glancing about the buzz of activity. "Excuse me, I'm looking for Lieutenant Kleghorn," I said to a passing cop.

He pointed to a door and I made for it and after knocking opened it. Looking into the interrogation room, a man in a trench coat turned, looking annoyed. While a man with messy greasy hair and chained to the desk he was sitting at, stared at me, his eyes going wide.

"And just who in the sam hell are you?" Kleghorn demanded of me.

Smiling, I stepped into the room. "I'm this man's lawyer and I demand that I have a private moment with my client, Lieutenant."

The cop stared grumpily at me then with a grunt, stalked out of the room, slamming the door behind him. Once he was gone, I frowned at the man in the chair as I removed my coat and set my case on the table.

"Sir I…" he started.

"Silence!" I snapped, interrupting him as I walked over to the camera and disconnected it.

"How did the boy escape?" I demanded, voice hard, as I returned to the table and sat down.

The man in front of me gulped. "Mostly on his own. He even put several of the security detail in the hospital."

"And how did he get out of the tank?" I asked, my mind racing.

"Before he broke out, doctors were sent in to… give him adrenaline… his heart almost stopped," he said in a shaky voice.

I blinked. "So he slowed his heart to a crawl, so that we would drain the tank and give him medical attention. Very clever, very clever indeed," I murmured, thoughtfully.

"I'm sorry sir. He escaped before we could determine whether he was the one," the man said his voice even weaker.

I looked at him and smiled. "On the contrary this proves he is the one and now you're done," I said.

He gulped. "What do you mean done?"

Smiling I reached over and put my hand on the side of his neck. "Done means done."

Smiling he gave a weak chuckle then toppled face first on the table, a spike sticking out of his neck. Soon I was out of the station adjusting my long coat as I went.

'So we have finally found him,' a voice in my mind said.

'Yes and this time he won't escape,' I replied.

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	12. Voices of the Past

WILDWING

I sat on a chair while Drake lay in med bed in front of me. I said, nothing as looked at him the medical sensors giving off the steady bet of his heart rate, which echoed through the silence. I didn't move as I heard the door hiss open and footsteps of two people entering.

"Any change?" Mallory asked, placing a hand his shoulder as Xena went to examine the senor readouts.

I shook my head. "It's been three days … three since we got him out, and he still hasn't woken up," I said, as Xena walked over to examine the read outs from the sensors.

"Could the drugs still be in him?" Xena asked, looking at me.

Glancing at her, I shook my head. "The drugs left his system faster than we could flush them, his brain scans are normal, there is nothing stopping him from waking up," I said, as they pulled up a chair each.

For a few moments, we just sat in silence, and Mallory patted my shoulder. "You've been in here for two days. Why don't you get some rest," she said, and I looked at her.

I was about the protest but was interrupted by a giant yawn. "Maybe you're right," I said, getting up, and before they could protest I laid down on one of the medical beds, and as soon as I closed my eyes was fast asleep.

MALLORY

Shaking my head, I looked back at Drake and took one of his hands in mine. For nearly half an hour me and Xena sat in silence.

"He's certainly grown attached to Drake," I said.

"He's not the only one," Xena said.

Looking at her, I asked, "What do you mean?"

She turned to look at me then stole a glance at my hands which at the moment held Drakes. "You're not one to talk ever since we got him back you've been coming and spending your days here," I said.

After a couple seconds, she smiled. "He's my friend and I did try to make it seem like I was visiting Emily," she said.

The two shared a smile and looked back at Drake. "He was supposed to be my tutor. If he would just wake up, I'd work double hard," Xena muttered lowering he eyes as I looked at her.

"Promises, promises,"

My head whipped around my eyes going wide as I looked at Drake. "Drake…" I muttered moving closer.

I watched as his lids twitched then slowly begin to open. "And I'm going to hold you to that," he said, looking at Xena after that to my amazement, he little by little sat up.

Still to shock to say anything they watched as Drake held his head in his hand. "How long have I been out?" he asked, rubbing the bridge of his nose.

"Three days,"

Looking at us, he opened his mouth to say something but was interrupted as his stomach roared and chuckling, he said, "So… what's a guy gotta do to get some food around here?"

At once, Xena sprang on to her feet running through the door shouting, "HE'S AWAKE! HE WANT'S SOME FOOD! GET SOME FOOD!" and Wildwing bolted upright in the med bed and nearly fell flat on his face as he leapt from it.

The next thing I knew Wildwing had Drake wrapped in his arms. "Drake are you alright? How are you feeling?" Wildwing demanded of Drake.

"I'll be fine… when you stop… crushing my ribs," Drake managed to get out, and at once Wildwing let him go and held his upper arms in his hands.

"Drake don't you ever scare us like that again," he said, trying to sound harsh.

Giving Wildwing a small grin Drake looked at him. "I'll be sure to take special care for people aiming to shoot me with tranquilizers and kidnap me…" he said, then was stopped as the three of us looked at each other.

We held each other's gaze for a moment before we all embraced. "We were so worried about you," I said.

For a couple of moments, we remained that way just holding each other. "It's a Hallmark moment," Xena said, behind us.

At once, the three of us whipped around to stare at everyone else as they stood in the door laughing, and as they looked at us.

TANYA

"Drake really you should rest," I said, glancing over him as I checked over the medical scanner results.

"I feel fine Tanya," he said, polishing off a burger.

"Well in a lot of ways you are fine. You have a heart rate that is well below normal; your metabolism is through the roof, and for someone who's been under for the past three days your muscles appear to have no signs of atrophy," I said, leaning against the wall as he stood.

"And there you have it now can I please go," he said, a wise guy grin across his face.

We held each other's gazes for a moment before smiling I lowered my gaze. "Go on get out of here you wise guy," I said.

The wise guy grin still in place he blew me an air kiss as he started to leave. "And we both know that's what you guys like about me. By the way, did they…" he started pausing before the door.

"They got them but the leader is dead; somebody went to the station posing as his lawyer and stuck a spike in his neck," I said, interrupting him my face going grim.

Slowly, Drake lowered his gaze. "Well I can't say I'm sorry to hear that," he said, leaving

Slowly, I look back at the results. "Sad part is its true," I muttered my fingers cradling the side of my face as I frowned in thought.

"But I doubt anyone saw anything like this outside of the Olympics," I thought aloud.

DRAKE

I walked down the hall toward mine and Dive's room thinking about what Tanya had said. _Who would take such a risk to walk in the middle of a police station to commit murder?_ I thought.

_Someone who thinks he's untouchable;_ I thought answering myself as I pressed the release to the room and the door with a 'swoosh' opened.

I raised my leg to step through then paused glancing around. At once, I turned and ran down the hall. Knowing my best chances to find at least one duck or somebody was at the kitchen I stopped outside the door.

What I started to say was lost in my throat as I was hit by a tidal wave of noise. "SURPRISE!" everyone shouted, and I stood stunned in the frame.

Before them on the table was a cake while a banner was hanging above them reading 'HAPPY WAKING DAY!' The next thing I knew Emily darted forward and laughed as I scooped her into my arms.

"What's this?" I asked.

"Well dude we thought that it would be a good way to celebrate you finally waking up and being home," Nosedive said, coming forward.

"Or else are you going to be a spoil sport," Xena said.

Looking at her, I shook my head. "No but right now will someone please tell me where my stuff is," he said, looking at Wildwing.

"Well since you've been to Dive's room already…" he said, and walked out of the kitchen.

Frowning and after putting Emily down, I followed down the hall until he stopped outside a door, and he looked at me. "Sorry Drake but Dive said, he needs his space," Wildwing said, and pressed the release by the door.

As the door opened so did my mouth, and I slowly walked inside looking at some of the posters on the walls and the furniture. "We didn't know what to do for style aside from your hockey…" Wildwing started before I turned to him.

"Its perfect Wildwing even the Chuck Norris which, by the way, I have a feeling you got me Xena," I said, looking at her, and she shrugged.

"And I must say it will be nice to get away from Dives snoring but right now did somebody say the word party," I said, slapping my hands together and everyone chuckled as we left.

Hours later I lay in my new bed trying to get to sleep not feeling tired in the least and frustrated I looked at the clock. "Either I ate too much sugar at that party, or I got acute insomnia and if the guy who shot me wasn't dead I'd kill him," I muttered when I saw it was nearly four in the morning.

"I give up," I muttered slipping out from under the covers.

Soon enough I was showered and walking out the door dressed in a pair of sweat pants and loose shirt. Hoping to burn off whatever it was so that I wouldn't have another sleepless night I walked down to the gym. Walking in as the lights came on and after dropping down into a split to stretch out my legs, I stood up and continued to stretch.

"Ok ladies let's make love," I muttered rolling my neck and feeling it and hearing it pop.

After running a few miles on a treadmill and lifting weights I was at one of the heavy bags it swinging wildly as I pounded away at it with my fists and feet. After throwing a powerful kick to the bag I sagged against it and turned unsurprised to look at Mallory looking at me a smug look on her face.

"I knew it; I knew it," she said, walking in pointing at me.

"Since when?" I asked, whipping my brow.

"Since that day, at the mall when that truck nearly hit you. You dropped into a tiger stance," she said, coming close turned my back to her.

"So who taught you and please don't give me that line again about learning it on the streets," she said, as I looked back her a frown on my face.

"Look Drake your moves are too perfect someone had to teach you, and I know you couldn't have learned them on the streets, because I'm from the streets," she said, jabbing her thumb into her chest.

I held her gaze for a moment before turning away, and I heard her let out a sigh. When I heard her move, I looked back and frowned as she got gear out of a closet and tossed some to me.

"Well if you're not going to go into detail I'd like to see for myself just how good you are," she said, hands on her hips.

NOSEDIVE

Stifling a yawn I walked down the corridor. Thinking of getting an early workout, I walked to the gym and pressed the release then froze all sleep draining out of me. Bolting from the door, I ran full out down the corridor bursting into the kitchen where everyone else was congregated.

"Bro what the heck…" Wildwing started.

"Drake is fighting Mallory!" I barked, interrupting him then was nearly run over as everyone dropped what they were doing and barreled out of the room.

DRAKE

Mallory hit the floor of the ring as I close lined her after deflecting a punch and a kick turning to face her; I was met by her rolling forward and knocking me to the ground. Rolling around we tried to pin one another for a moment with me barely managing to slip out a couple of times and her like wise.

When we managed to get our feet with my hands and forearms wrapped round the back of her neck, I started throwing knee strikes to her face. After a couple, she managed to block a couple, she managed to grab my leg and sends me down. Rolling back onto my feet, I threw a hard kick across her face forcing her roll to her side.

Going at her as she got onto her feet I was met by hard kick to my chest then an elbow to my face. Going with the blow I spun around and jumping up throwing a kick across her face. Coming at her again she kicked me in the gut from the mat before she slipped back to her feet.

Coming at me again with a punch in one fluid motion, I deflected it with my forearm and elbow and struck out with the side of my hand. Stepping back from the blow she came at me again but again fluidly I had her flipped onto her back but was kicked in the face, and she leapt to her feet.

Hands raised I blocked and deflected a kick and a punch from Mallory, who blocked a kick I threw before ducking under a spin kick. Still moving with the momentum I spun around again and nailed her in the gut with a kick. Rolling onto one knee she swept out at my ankle.

Leaping up I flipped back and landed on the corner post of the ring one leg tucked close my arms out wide behind me for balance. After a seconds hesitation, she leapt at me with a kick I leapt up flipping like an acrobat over her to land behind her. Turning to face me, she met the side of my foot held steady a couple of inches from her face.

We remained like that for a couple seconds breathing hard then slowly I retracted my leg and placed it on the mat as I turned fully to face her. At the sound of clapping the two of us turned to face the other as they clapped.

"Mallory, Drake…," Wildwing started but was interrupted as I dived over the ropes rolled to my feet and ran out of the room.

I didn't stop until I reached the seats in the pond and plopped down into a seat my head falling into my hands. For a couple of moments sat in silence my mind on the past.

"The sun'll come out  
Tomorrow  
Bet your bottom dollar  
That tomorrow  
There'll be sun

Just thinkin' about  
Tomorrow  
Clears away the cobwebs,  
And the sorrow  
'Til there's none

When I'm stuck a day  
That's gray,  
And lonely,  
I just stick out my chin  
And Grin,  
And Say,  
Oh

The sun'll come out  
Tomorrow  
So ya gotta hang on  
'Til tomorrow  
Come what may  
Tomorrow! Tomorrow  
I love ya Tomorrow  
You're always  
A day  
A way," I sang under my breath and a tear slipped down my cheek.

"Why don't you have a seat Mallory," I said, looking over as she stood at the bottom of the stairs before my gaze shifted to the ice.

"I didn't know you were a fan of Annie," she said, as she took a seat next to me, and I looked at her.

"It was my mother's favorite show and song. She always said, it proved that no matter how bad things get there will always be a new dawn," I said, and Mallory nodded in understanding and the two of us said, nothing for a moment.

"So have we reached the part of the movie where I spill my guts?" I asked, and she chuckled.

"Only if you want it to be," she said.

I was silent in thought for a moment as she looked at me then started to leave. "My great grandfather fought in World War II. In the 442, one day, one of the young white officers saved his life. In saying, thank you he taught him what he could of his family style of Ninjutsu.

By the time the war ended the two were like brothers and returned home together. There my great grandfather married his friend's sister and was taught everything about the style. That man taught my grandfather who taught my father…," I started.

"…who taught you," Mallory finished for me sitting back down.

At the thought of my father, I burst into tears and my face fell back into my hands. "My father was a good man strong and sturdy, and my mother was wise and kind. Why, why…" I moaned.

"Drake I know how you feel," Mallory said, laying comforting hands on my shoulders.

"No you don't!" I snapped, not looking at her.

"Yes I do," she said, coldly, and I looked at her.

"My parents were killed in a fire. Like you; I lived on the streets for a time before like you; I was taken in by a man. He was a member of Puckworld Special Forces, and like you as I sat cold and hungry he said, to me 'you can either come with me and make something of yourself or don't'. He and his wife took me in as their own and taught me everything he knew, and it's because of him, I became who I am," she said.

She and I looked at each other for a moment before she patted me on the shoulder. "If you ever need to talk more," she muttered, then left, and I sat back in my chair looking up at the ceiling.

Ten minutes later I was skating on the ice not really paying attention my eyes closed as I moved listening to the skates moving across the ice. "Drake…" a voice said, and my eyes snapped, open and came to a quick stop.

"Ok whoever is doing that it is not funny, and you are so…" I Barked, wheeling around stopping in my tracks.

"So' what?"

"So dead, because whoever you are you have a very sick sense of humor, making your voice like my mother. So when I get my hands on you…" I started.

"Watch your mouth Dragon!" a second voice snapped, interrupting me.

I jerked back so fast I nearly fell on my bum. "D…D…Dad," I stuttered out in shock.

"I think it's a little late for you to get your hands on us. And if you ever talk to your mother like that again…,"

"Duncan that's enough we don't have much time," my mother's voice snapped.

"Sorry Moya,"

"Look can you guys stop that, and where the hell are you? Or is this all in my head?" I demanded spinning around.

"You're not crazy and this isn't in your head Drake. As for where we are we are in a place you'd best not know about. But right now you have to listen to us because we don't have much time,"

"Ok, I may be crazy, but I'll go along with this," I muttered.

"You're not crazy, and do you remember the story your mother used to tell you?" My father's voice said.

"Yeah," I muttered.

"The world needs him to return in way or another," My mother's voice said.

"But... it's just a bedtime story,"

"That's for you to decide Drake, for it to remain a story, or in these dark days become who you were born to be," My mother's voice said, as it faded away.

When the voices went silent, I glanced around before lowering my gaze in thought. Coming to a decision I looked back up face hard. Later, that night while everyone else was asleep I stood in front of a holographic imagining table in Tanya's lab. On it was a rotating image of a delivery system.

It was as long as my forearm with metal loops connected by rods. On top sat the launcher on a slide with the ordinance. Stopping the rotation I reached out and slipped my hand and arm through until it rested on my forearm where it remained as I brought my arm close and examined it.

As I did the launder smoothly slid up and down the slide. Then in a fluid quick movement I leveled my arm and fired one of the ordinances across the table.

"DRAKE 1 make subtle modifications to increase velocity and range of the primary launcher by about… twenty-five percent," I said, after examining the data.

After watching the changes were made and was pleased that it didn't make changes in shape. After looking it over, I turned my forearm with the launcher sliding to the next position. With a flick of my wrist, one of the ordinances shot forward and slipped past my hand before I could catch it.

"Decrease secondary launcher velocity by about fifteen percent," I said, and after the changes were made and trying again this time I caught it.

After catching it a few more times I looked at the ordinance in thought. "Decrease by one percent save specs for further modification," I said, and the holo-image faded.

"Bring up possible ordinance specs," I commanded and a new image appeared over the table and I started working.

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	13. Dragon Knight

**MALLORY…**

Yawning I paused when again I saw the kitchen once more empty. Frowning in annoyance, I walked over my annoyance deepening when I saw Drake's bowl in the sink. After getting my own breakfast, I sat at the table pondering on Drake's absences when Wildwing came in.

After looking around he muttered, "Already come and gone again eh?" he asked, and I nodded as he joined me at the table.

"He's been like this ever since he got back, coming early then disappearing for the rest of the day. We don't even know if he's staying in the Headquarters anymore," he said, and they looked at each other with puzzled expressions when Tanya came in.

Turning Wildwing frowned at the look on her face. "what's up?' he asked.

Looking at him she scowled, "someone has been using some of the equipment in my lab. For past couple of days I went in and found some of the equipment still warm," she said.

Frowning at this me and Wildwing looked at each other. "Did you try to find out who it was?" I asked.

Nodding she threw her arms up. "Yes I've tried but it's encrypted! I spent most of the morning trying to crack it!" she snapped.

We looked at each other again. "What the heck is going on?" I muttered.

**DRAKE…**

"AAAGGGAHHH!" I screamed as I dropped through the air flaying my limbs trying to get the wings to deploy from the pack on my separated armored plated back.

When they finally did and attached to the underside of my arms I pulled up hard and crashed head first into a street bench. Plowing through the planks, I rolled across the ground before finally coming to a stop. With a moan, I climbed to one knee looking back at the building I had just jumped.

Reaching up I detached my mask, which was set in the jaws of a roaring dragonhead with two swept back horns which made up my helmet. The mask had a pair of thick scowling eyebrows on it and fierce eyepieces with a three vertical slits over the mouth. The rest of what I was wearing consisted of black separated armor plating connected by a flexible black material.

Low on the hips was a pair of rods with the same black material separating emitters on both sides from the main body and around the grip. Along my forearms was a set of three emitters.

Rubbing and rolling my shoulder I muttered, "DRAKE 1, increase wing deployment sensitivity by twenty five percent, and I hate to do this but reset simulation," he said, and the world around him dissolved then reappeared with him back on the roof.

I replaced the mask and almost instantly the screen popped up and readings started popping up. Then taking a breath I ran forward and threw myself arms wide from the roof. With the wind whipping by my arms went to my sides then jerked them wide.

At once, the wings deployed and attached to his outstretched arms and filled. With a jerk, I leveled out and soared over the ground.

"WHOOO HOOO!" I called in excitement as turn and arching my arms high landed on one knee retracting the wings.

"YES!" I barked, standing back arched arms high and wide in triumph.

"Proximity warning" DRAKE 1 called.

"Scenery change four and save armor setting and start construction for tonight," I immediately said, the armor I was wearing disappeared, and the scenery around me changed.

**WILDWING…**

The doors to the Battle Simulator hissed open and we frowned as we stepped into what seemed to be a jungle its sound echoing in my ears. Making my way through I found Drake sitting against a great tree looking at a rushing wide river. As I pushed some ferns aside, he turned to look at me.

"Interesting place for a sit down, where are we anyway?" I said, smiling joining him against the tree.

He smiled before he looked back the river. "The Amazon Rainforest Basin I find it rather peaceful," he said.

Looking around I nodded in understanding. "I see what you mean," I muttered.

For a few seconds the two of us sat in silence before he asked, "Is something wrong?"

Looking back at him, I shook my head. "No it's just we haven't seen you in a while," I said, looking at him.

At that, he gave a guilty smile. "Sorry about that, it's just I've had slot on my mind. But before you guys go out on patrol I'll join you guys for dinner," he said, standing.

Smiling I stood and offered my hand which he took as I helped him to his feet. "How about now, Drake 1 end program," I said, and as the holograms dissolved the two of us left.

Later that night after dinner we piled into the Migrator to head out on patrol with Drake watching as the Migrator was raised up and Phil running into the room shouting at us about an endorsement tomorrow I was quite. "Something wrong?" Dive asked, looking at me.

Looking at him, I shook my head. "No just a feeling, Nutronic Batteries to power! Set tork for maximum traction! Turbines to speed!" I ordered as the Migrator reached pond level and we raced forward.

**DRAKE…**

Lowering my hand I glanced at Phil who was still ranting and raving about some photo shoot for what sounded like either the Lions Club. On the other hand, was it The Hunters Club? Either way shaking my head, a small smile on my face left him there.

A few hours later from the shadows of a rooftop, I was wearing my newly completed armor and watching through the night version mode of my mask as a van opened its back door revealing guns lined neatly in the back. As a sedan that had backed in popped its trunk while gang members climbed out showing suitcases that when they opened them showed packets of drugs. After watching the deal start, he withdrew further into the shadows.

The gunrunners smiling hands bobbing said, "Now, now no need to push there's plenty for everyone," as he tossed one an automatic rifle and I flicked my wrist.

As designed, the ordinance shot into my hand. The top part had a dragonhead design facing the side with the bottom coming to a sharp point. Then with a small sound of metal on metal, a pair of encircled blades extended like wings.

Cocking it, the banger grinned and cocking my arm threw the shuriken. "I THINK NOT!" I called after it connected with the rifle knocking it out of the bangers hands.

They turned looking up as I dropped wings extended toward them. Bringing my legs forward I kicked one hard in the chest. Turning I blocked a blow from another and kicked another at my side launching him off his feet into the alley wall. Locking out the arm of the banger I had a hold on I kicked him in the face and he reared back blood coming from his mouth.

Turning I kicked one of the gunrunners in the gut before leg still raised kicking another hard in the chest knocking both off their feet. Spinning I kicked another in the face sending him spinning into the wall. Still spinning I blocked another blow and backhanded him across the face.

After dropping down to sweep a man's legs out from under him still on the ground, I kicked a man in the face as he started to climb out of the van, he fell back in, and I caught what he dropped. "SHOOT!" I barked, when I saw it was a live grenade and dropped it under the van.

As the runners and dealers ran for cover I grabbed the man in the van and dragged him out and we barely got clear before the van exploded knocking us to the ground. Looking back at the fiery wreck, I heard a cocking above me. Reacting I leapt into the air spinning and kicked the three men and they fell to the ground.

At another gun being cocked, I turned and saw a banger holding an Uzi on me. "What now eh? What you got eh," he barked.

I looked at him for a second before in a flash raised my arm and a fully formed shuriken shot from the launcher knocking the gun from his hands. "Buts that's not all," I muttered.

With a jerk of my arms, the emitters on my forearms activated making short curved blades. Opening my hands the rods shot into my hands and again the emitters activated and katana blades extended from them. For a second he and I looked at each other before I spun and with a circular motion cut the through the trunk from the bottom up.

Turning to look at him, I saw his eyes wide looking from the sedan to me before he raised his hands. "That's what I thought," I muttered, deactivating the rods and the blades on my forearms before turning.

"What am I going to tell my supplier," the man I had dragged out said, looking at the burning van and he looked up at me as I put my foot on his chest.

"Tell him they sold like hot cakes," I said, before dragging him to his feet.

Just as I was finishing securing them in the sedan with the drugs when I looked up at the sound of sirens. Stepping back, I jumped up and the rockets in my boots fired launching me skyward before they killed themselves and I extended my wings. Looking back, I smiled behind my mask as saw the police arrive.

**DUKE…**

Sighing on how slow the patrol was I swiveled in my chair and saw Mallory looking over a video. Getting up I walked over and saw she was watching a video of the match between her and Drake.

"What trying to find a way to beat him next time?" I asked and she looked at me.

Shaking her head, she looked back at the video. "No some things didn't make sense," she muttered.

"What you said, his grandfather and father taught him martial arts," I said, frowning.

"Yes but something is not right abou that. Like here…," she muttered stopping the video pointing.

"this is move is Aikido, and here Maui Tai, then ground grappling that was Jiu-jitsu, and that last part was from Eagle and Dragon Style Kung Fu," she said, point out various parts of the video before looking back at me.

After a moment of thought, I muttered. "Maybe he watched a lot of things through a window and practiced on his own," I said.

At that, she frowned. "Duke he fought at a masters level, adapted to what I did pretty fast, and these moves were to perfectly executed for that. For someone his age that's impossible for him to know so any styles that well, especially since only a handful of masters for some of these styles live in the country," she said, looking back then turned as a call came over the police ban for us to come to a scene.

After hearing what had happened over the police band we quickly made our way over to the scene. Getting out of the Migrator, we stared in amazement at the burning van and the sedan with clean cuts in the trunk. In the light of the fire and the flashing lights of the police cars, we watched the runners and bangers being hauled into the police van or loaded in to ambulances.

"What the hell did you ducks do here start World War Three!"

Turning we watched Kleghorn come over to us. "What are you talking about? We didn't do this," Wildwing said, jabbing his thumb at the scene.

At that, Kleghorn frowned. "Then who…," he started.

"Lieutenant! You might want to see this!" a voice interrupted him.

Going over we stared. There on the wall a line of words were cut into it.

**DRAGON KNIGHT WAS HERE**

"Great another Mondo Man," I moaned my forehead falling into my hand.

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	14. Friends & Family

**DRAKE...**

A few weeks later again I was out late at night in my armor looking over the edge of a building at the end of an alley. "Why is it always warehouses," I muttered my voice altered by my mask as a moving van and a limo pulled up to what looked like an abandoned building.

As people got out of the limo, I narrowed my eyes as the sensors zoomed in on their faces. "ok we got a Hong Kong Triad smuggler scum bag, a local mobster main hobby prostitution, and…," I muttered as the computer after a face of faces ID each one and I stopped at the last.

"…one undercover FBI Special Agent Bryan White," I muttered as the three moved toward the van and his eyes widened in horror as the back was opened.

"Well let's make sure he succeeds," I growled as the young Asian girls were marched out.

Down near the entrance of the building I lurked in the shadows behind one of the goons on patrol another going in the opposite direction. As they started, crossing each other my hands shot out of the dark grabbed the back of their heads and drove their heads together with a crunch. As they slumped to the ground out cold with blood leaking from head wounds, I slipped inside.

Silently sneaking up behind another goon, I grabbed him one arm going around his neck my opposite hand covering his mouth as I kicked his legs out from under him. When he went, still I let him drop. Then moved on.

From my position in the rafters of a lighted room, I watched as men patrolled around a chainlinked pen where all the young girls were. Glancing over I saw the Triad smuggler, the mobster, and Agent White were gathered in a small lit roofless office. I watched as the three talked and with a snap of the mobster's fingers briefcases were brought forward and when opened to show they were full of money.

When they shook hands, I sank further into the shadows and with a flick of my wrist; a shuriken shot into my hand and threw it. It sailed through the air with a small whistling sound and into the junction box. All eyes turn to it and a second later, a surge went from the shuriken into the box, which exploded, and with sparks, flying the lights went out.

With shouts of alarm and orders being called out, I dropped to the floor night vision coming on as I landed with a roll. Charging forward grabbed the rife of one of the goons and drove into the man's face. Turning I pushed a goon's gun arm aside and dropping down swept his leg out from under him with my opposite arm and off his feet before I drove a hammer fist down onto his gut sending him to the floor hard.

Turning I side kicked another goon hard in the chest before side slipping over another and kicking him in the small of his back after I landed. Spinning I drove my fist into another's head before grabbing two by the face and brought them both to the floor. Leaping forward into the air and after kicking one in the chest spun around and kicked another across the face.

Back on my feet, I grabbed another and after throwing him over my shoulder to the ground broke his arm at the joint over my knee. As he cried turned nailing two in the face with pair of backhands over the shoulder when it happened.

The blast of a shotgun sounded and I dive rolled out of the way for cover as the girls in the cage cowered where they were. Looking at the shooter, I watched him shoot blindly in the dark while his bosses yelled at him. Then my eyes widened as the barrel turned on White.

Darting forward I got in front of him tackling him to the ground just as he fired the shot nailing me in the back. With me laying on top of him, I moaned in pain.

"Pal you ok?" White asked.

"Yeah its bulletproof, still hurts though Agent White," I moaned quietly and he fell silent.

"Maybe one day I'll explain but right now do you have backup?"

"Yeah," he said as I heard the men come closer.

"Don't call them in, until I say," I muttered into his ear before turning and kicked one in the chest.

Rolling forward off him a shuriken shot into my hand and turning I threw it into the gun arm of one of the Triad's guards. As he screamed in pain I rushed forward grabbed the shotgun and after ramming the side of the gun into the man's face swept him to the ground. Using the rifle as leverage broke the man's leg before spinning back around and kicked the Triad member across the face.

Coming down on top of him, I grabbed him by his collar. "_I hate slavers!_" I growled drawing back my fist.

"Drop it clown!" a voice snapped and turning I saw the mobster hold a gun and flashlight on me.

Smiling the man muttered, "what now _hero_!" he said.

Smiling behind my mask I answered, "Call in a favor, right Special Agent White?" and the man froze as a gun cocked behind him.

"Right," White said holding his gun on the mobster.

Turning back to the Triad member I muttered, "Now where were we," before I plowed my fist into his face.

Back on my feet, I walked over to the holding cage and the girls shrank further back. "Key!" I snapped turning to face the guy lifting the lock.

He remained silent and rolling my eyes, I turned back and ripped both the lock and the door from the chain link pen. "Come on out you're safe," I said motioning but they remained still as statues.

Slapping a hand to where my forehead would be I moaned, "right probably don't understand a word I said," I muttered.

"No we understand,"

Looking again I saw one of the girls come forward fear on her face. "You're not one of them?" she asked.

I shook my head. "No you have my word of honor," I said holding out my hand.

Looking at it she slowly took another step before slowly taking it and I helped her step through. As she looked at me, the other girls piled out. I held her gaze for a moment then turned looking at White as cuffed the mobster and the still unconscious Triad to a pipe.

"What's going too happened to them?" I asked walking over.

White looked at me before looking at them. "Well we'll take them into custody after we get their statements then more than likely deported," he said.

"Which would get them killed," I muttered looking at them.

"What do you…," he started but stopped when I interrupted.

"These girls probably came from one of the poorest provinces in Northern China. Their parents probably sold them to the Snakeheads. Sending them back will be a death sentence to them," I said then looked back at the office then walked into it.

When I came out, I had the briefcases. "Is this his money?" I asked lifting them up.

As White nodded, the Mobster blurted out, "hey you can't…," but stopped after I knocked him out with a kick.

"Shut up," I muttered as White watched in silence as I walked over and handed the money over to the girl I spoke to.

"Take this divide it equally and start new lives here. Just do me a favor apply for legal citizenship, now git the feds will be here soon," he said as she took it then after speaking to the other girls they all ran out.

I turned watching them go and White came over. "You do realize that you just gave them several million dollars in evidence, and where did you learn how to speak Cantonese?" he said and I looked at him taking and pressing both sides of an object from my waist.

"Arrest me, but either way you can call in the Calvary, and I don't know how to speak Cantonese," I said then dropped the object at my feet and in a flash of light smoke poured out and covered me by the time it cleared I was gone.

I woke early in the next morning a little stiff from the night's adventures. Climbing out of bed slowly walked into my bathroom and flipped on the lights. Tuning to look into the mirror, I winced at the bruises that spotted various parts of my body.

"Good thing I was wearing a helmet, didn't know a blast from a shotgun could hurt so much. Drake 1 Medical, physical abrasions heal," I said aloud after glancing at giant bruise on my back.

At once, a ring descended from the ceiling encircling me. As it passed over my head lasers shot out and dragged down my body. As it passed over the bruises, they vanished bit by bit as the lasers passed over them.

After it reached my feet, it raised itself up and replaced itself on the ceiling and I turn in a circle looking over my newly healed body. "Gotta love alien technology," I said smiling before hopping in the shower.

A short while later I was laying a smiley face breakfast on the table in front of Emily. A few minutes later Emily was rolling across the floor laughing as I made impressions with a napkin over my face. When the door hissed opened, I froze turning to look at it.

"At least one of you is acting your age," I heard Wildwing say and I faced Emily.

"Now where is the fun in acting your own age," I said and she gave one finally fit of laughter before I slipped the napkin from my face.

Turning again, I frown at how both Wildwing and Mallory looked. "What's up with you?" I asked.

The two looked at each other before answering, "Dragon Knight struck again last night. Stepped in on a cop sting. His armor stopped a shotgun blast to the back, but the way this guy is taking risks he's more than likely the get himself killed no matter how good he is.

But right now I'm just glad if he isn't Mondo Man," Mallory said taking some cereal from a cupboard.

Nodding I muttered, "Dragon Knight sounds like a bad comic, or cartoon," as I pulled out my new cell and checked the clock on it.

"Sorry guys I gotta go," I said standing and Emily pouted.

"Where?" Wildwing asked frowning.

"I have a tutoring appointment with Xena, I'll be back for sure this time," I said putting my plate away.

Out in the hall I kept a straight face all the way to the elevator before I snorted a smile lighting my face. I caught a bus to the school and a few heads turned as I walked inside. After reporting to the office, I was shown to a classroom where Xena sat waiting for him.

As he came in, she turned and smiled. "Nice to see you out of HQ," she said.

"Well in some ways, it's good to be out. So, where do we start," I said joining her at her table.

An hour later, she put away her math and science stuff and I watched her. How her eye seemed to sharpen even when she struggled.

As I pulled out her history stuff I muttered, "And now for history, and as Edison once said 'never stop questioning,' we must keep questioning the past to learn from it."

She frowned at that and said quickly, "I think it was Einstein that said that."

Frowning as I laid her book on the table in nodded. "Yeah I think you're right he did say that, and since you can name quotes from Einstein, I must take a leaf from him and ask a question," I said as I saw her freeze.

"Why the hell do you need a tutor?" I asked head in my hand a sly smile on my face.

She looked at me for a few seconds then sighed, "I don't I've been faking it," and I frowned.

"Why?" I asked my forearm lowering to the table.

Standing she walked to the window and looked out. "When I first started school I blew the teachers away how fast I was learning. At first, I was proud but I got a lot of heat from it. Being called a freak, nerd, things like that.

So I thought it would be best to hold myself back in school. And I was making it work holding back in school while doing college level work at home with a friend. I know it sounds silly but I didn't want to stand out, I wanted to be, normal," I said before facing him again.

Looking at her, I nodded. "Understandable, but tell me you know how smart I am. Do I seem like a freak or a nerd?" I asked eyebrows going up.

She looked at me and smiled. "No you're cool," she said sitting down and I chuckled.

For a few seconds we had a laugh or over it before she grew serous again. "Drake practically since we had our first calls together I had a feeling that you were as smart as me. If not smarter," she said and my eyebrows went higher.

"From you that's high praise indeed. Now as your tutor its time I gave a lesson, that is after I inform the principle," I said standing.

"In what I practically know everything?" she asked.

Looking at her, I smiled. "Math, and history another day," I muttered.

Half an hour later, we were at an arcade playing a game. "Oh come on! I would have thought you'd have better coordination then that!" I said into my mike from my spinning arcade pod as my score went higher after shooting down a few more animated fighters.

"Don't worry about me my coordination is top notch, worry about your own," she snapped back at me through my ear price as our scores became equal.

**XENA...**

We walked out of the arcade laughing and debating about the game. "… just won't admit that I'm the better pilot and shot than you," Drake said and I playfully shoved him.

"Well next time we go arcade setting and we'll see who gets the final ace, how about a hotdog," I said gesturing toward a vender.

After he looked at the vender, he started shaking his head. "Oh no I know where you can get the best hotdogs in town and it's near an old family friend," he said.

Thirty minutes later, we were at the second level of the mall and I was eating my hotdog. "You're right best dogs in town," I moaned in pleasure.

After swallowing his bite, he nodded. "I have missed these, now I would like you to meet someone," he said and led me over to where an old blind Japanese man with dark glasses over his eyes sat at a stand with bowl of money and a bonsai on a table his radio telling a story of Dragon Knights latest antics.

As we approached, the old man turned his head to face us. "Drake, it is so good to see you, in a since that is," he said smiling and I frowned.

"It's good to see you to Satoshi to anything good on the news?" Drake said.

"Only you my Little Fighting Tiger," he said.

At that, Drake drowned. "What they did they run another story about me in the papers?" he asked.

"As to that I can only guess," Satoshi said then looked in my direction.

"Now who is this lovely young lady with you?" he asked and Drake looked at me.

"Who said I was a lady?" I asked deepening my voice.

Smiling the old man clicked his tongue rapidly. "Cheating on a blind man didn't your mother teach you better, if I'm not mistaken you're blushing," he said and I hid my face as it flushed.

"Hey nothing from the peanut gallery," I said waving at Drake as he covered his laugh with his hand.

Just then, a man came up. "How much for a paper?" he asked taking one from the rack.

"The Times two fifty," Satoshi said facing the man.

Nodding the man put the money in the bowl and started to walk away but was stopped as Satoshi blocked him with his fly swatter. "And that cookie is a dollar fifty," he said and the man froze.

He opened his mouth then looked from both mine and Drake's hard faces. "Sorry sir, lot on my mind," he said dropping the rest of the money in the bowl.

"That's quite alright it happens to all of us at one point or another," Satoshi said and the man left.

"Are you sure you're blind?" I asked looking at him.

At that, Satoshi faced me then slowly raised his hand and slipped his sunglasses from his face. For a few seconds I stared into his misty white eyes before I lowered my gaze.

"It's alright young lady, I get that all the time," he said smiling slipping his shades back on.

After a good twenty minutes of laughter and talk, Drake said goodbye and the two of us turned to walk away. "I liked him a lot, who was he?" I asked as we got on the escalator down.

Smiling he looked at me. "He's the man who raised my mother. He was best friends with her parents. When my mother's father died in Vietnam and her mother a year later from cancer he took her in.

He tried to do the same for me in when… my parents died but the judge was a hard ass because he was blind and not a blood relative," he said.

**SATOSHI…**

When I could no longer hear them I reached over, turned the radio back up, and listen to more about The Dragon Knight as I felt a precence approach me. A moment later another set of footprints came close. Only these one were angry.

"I see you already know," I angry voice said.

Looking at the speaker I said, "I've known as long as you have, I'm blind not deaf," motion toward the radio.

"And yet you just saw him and didn't get him to change the name! Where is your pride? Your honor?" the man growled out in a low tone.

"Right where it needs to be," I said.

"How can you say that with what he has done? What he is still doing!" the voice demanded.

At that I flipped the sign on my stand after picking up my money grabbed the man and we walked into a bathroom. "Maybe because I remember everything that's been happening! Especially to him! Of all of them!

They have been targeted and vanished one at a time and he could vey well be the last! And what have we done! Nothing!

We did nothing! Even after it the first time to them! To him!" I snapped at him after I was sure we were alone.

The man was silent for a moment then. "Despite the losses he has no right to the name! And you had better believe that out of the rest of us I'm the calmest about what he has done! He's making it a part of a cheap superhero comic!" he snapped.

"Didn't you hear what I said? There could be no other! And you tell them from me that I was just as angry as they are about what he did!

But then I remembered everything that's been going on out there! Then it also crossed my mind that he's doing what we should have done a long time ago instead of waiting! So you tell them that I am proud of what he is doing out there!

He may not be the one we've been waiting for but he is pretty darn close! We failed to protect them when they needed us! And now every time he walks out of the Ducks HQ he is in danger and it grows the longer he stays out!" I snapped.

The man was silent for a moment then I heard him turn and walk away. "I'll tell them, but you forgot something, we haven't located his Heart Holder yet," he said then walked out of the bathroom.

After he was gone, I muttered, 'and where ever she is I hope she's safe,' I thought.

'Me to, but you should know that he's partially right,' a voice in my mind said.

'Not you to,' I thought with a moan.

'Don't worry I agree with you, but you have to think on this. The more he does what he's been doing the more he's alienates himself and the less the others will be willing to give him aid when he will need it,' the voice said before falling silent and I couldn't think of anything more to say.

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